Box Office Sees Record Attendance Thanks to Unexpected Hits

The film industry saw record attendance and profits in the first half of this year, thanks to a couple of hit films which drew over 10 million viewers.

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The Korean Film Council said Thursday that movie theaters drew some 193.2 million viewers, up 13.5 percent on-year, and raked in W931 billion, up 16 percent (US$1=W1,179).

The record profits were also possible due to a hike in ticket prices. Korea's three major movie theater chains -- CGV, Lotte Cinema and Megabox -- hiked the prices last year, making the average price W8,514.

Korean films drew some 56.88 million moviegoers as director Lee Byeong-heon-I's comedy "Extreme Job" was an unexpected box-office success, attracting over 16 million viewers, and director Bong Joon-ho's film "Parasite" is on track to reach 10 million viewers after it won the top prize at this year's Cannes Film Festival.

Meanwhile, foreign films drew about 52.44 million moviegoers. Ticket sales were boosted by the perennial draw of Marvel's superhero blockbuster "Avengers: Endgame" in addition to Disney's remake of the 1992 animated film "Aladdin", which became a sleeper hit, drawing over 10 million viewers. The latest installment of the Avengers franchise surpassed the 10-million viewer mark quicker than any other film released here.