BEGIN AGAIN Surprises at Korean Box Office

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Korea on Track to Become Film’s Biggest Market

Amidst a succession of successful local blockbusters, few other films have been paid close attention to on the charts in recent weeks. Yet one foreign release has been on a remarkable run and is set to make more in Korea than in any other territory. During its fifth week at the Korean box office, the US indie music-themed romcom Begin Again has moved up to second place on the chart (its highest position to date) after having accumulated KRW 14.88 billion (USD 14.32 million) from 1.86 million admissions and is on track to surpass its US total of USD 16.03 million in the coming days.

Following a solid bow in limited release on August 13th, the romcom, from Once (2006) director John Carney and starring Mark Ruffalo and Keira Knightley, grew steadily through word of mouth and has now made approximately one third of its global total from South Korea alone, far surpassing all markets save for the United States.

The phenomenon is reminiscent of last year’s About Time performance at the Korean box office, another romantic film (from Working Title) which made more in Korea than in any other market by the end of its run. Carney’s Once was also a hit in limited release in Korea, when it made USD 1.5 million dollars, approximately 7.5% of its global receipts.

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