The film "HOPE", which has entered the North American market, ranked No. 8 at the box office in its opening weekend.
According to Box Office Mojo, "HOPE" grossed 3.31 million dollars across North American theaters from the 11th to the 13th. The total gross from its opening day on the 9th through the weekend reached 501 million dollars.
Unusually for a Korean film, "HOPE" opened in 1,560 theaters across North America. While most Korean films previously introduced to North America, such as "Parasite" and "Decision to Leave", opted for a limited release strategy that started small and expanded screen counts based on audience response, "HOPE" premiered with a wide release strategy targeting over 1,500 theaters nationwide from the start. This was a strategy chosen by North American distributor Neon after assessing the high commercial potential of "HOPE".
Despite opening with a wide release, the per-theater average (PTA) figures fell short of expectations. It started at 705 dollars on opening day and rose to 833 dollars on Saturday the 12th, the first Saturday of release. However, the average for the entire opening period stopped at 642 dollars. PTA is a metric that serves as a basis for predicting audience interest and demand.
"HOPE" drew 4.56 million viewers domestically, failing to reach its break-even point of approximately 5 million viewers. As a project planned as a global scale production, performance in overseas markets including North America is just as important as domestic results. Director Na Hong-jin and the actors are putting all their effort into promoting the film abroad, starting with promotions in Vietnam.
(SBS Entertainment News | Kim Ji-hye)