Christopher Nolan's "Odyssey" was the clear winner of the Liberation Day holiday box office. The film drew more than 2.3 million admissions over the holiday period alone and crossed the 5 million cumulative admissions mark on its 13th day of release. "Spider-Man: Brand New Day," which helped ignite this summer's theater-going boom, cemented its own long-running success by becoming the highest-grossing entry in its franchise.
According to the Korean Film Council's integrated ticketing network, 2,312,399 moviegoers visited theaters to see "Odyssey" during the four-day holiday period from Aug. 14 through Aug. 17. The film dominated the box office throughout, with a daily average seat occupancy rate — the share of available seats actually sold — approaching 70 percent, reflecting strong audience demand.
Riding that momentum, "Odyssey" surpassed 5 million cumulative admissions around 10 a.m. Monday. That pace is comparable to Nolan's domestic all-time blockbuster "Interstellar," which drew 10 million admissions, and faster than this year's Korean box office hits "The King's Warden" and "Gunche."
The film's box office run shows no sign of slowing. As of Tuesday morning, advance ticket sales for "Odyssey" still exceeded 500,000, with a reservation rate of 74.4 percent.
"Odyssey" is a blockbuster based on Homer's ancient epic poem. The film follows Odysseus, who led the Greeks to victory in the Trojan War, on his decade-long journey home to Ithaca as he overcomes trials set by the gods.
"Spider-Man: Brand New Day" is also closing in fast on a franchise record, having quickly surpassed the 7 million admissions mark.
The film drew 1,019,585 admissions over the four-day holiday period, surpassing 7 million admissions faster than any film this year on Sunday before topping 7.57 million as of Tuesday morning. It surpassed the totals of its two predecessors — "Spider-Man: Homecoming" (7.25 million) and "Spider-Man: No Way Home" (7.55 million) — within 21 days of opening.
Attention now turns to whether "Spider-Man: Brand New Day" can overtake "Spider-Man: Far From Home" (8.02 million) — the top-grossing entry in the Tom Holland Spider-Man series, known among Korean fans as "Tom-Spa" — and set a new franchise record.
"Spider-Man: Brand New Day" is an action blockbuster in which Peter Parker, forgotten by everyone following the events of "Spider-Man: No Way Home," gains uncontrollable powers through a DNA mutation while a mysterious enemy who still remembers his identity emerges, plunging him into deeper chaos as he fights new threats to protect those he holds dear.
balme@heraldcorp.com
