'Chiikawa' edges out 'Assassin(s)' by 215 viewers to claim holiday box office crown

Japanese animated film "Chiikawa the Movie: The Secret of the Mermaid Island" topped the box office over the Hangul Day holiday weekend, edging out director Heo Jin-ho's "Assassin(s)" by just 215 viewers. "Assassin(s)," pushed to second place, crossed the 3 million cumulative admissions mark on its 20th day in theaters.

According to data from the Korean Film Council's integrated ticketing system released Monday, "Chiikawa the Movie: The Secret of the Mermaid Island" — known locally as "Chiikawa" — drew about 407,800 viewers over the three-day period from Friday through Sunday to claim the weekend box office top spot. Its revenue share stood at 29.7 percent. The film, which opened Sept. 30, has now logged a cumulative audience of about 1,281,000.

"Assassin(s)" drew about 407,600 viewers over the same period, capturing a 28.8 percent revenue share. The two films were virtually neck and neck in admissions, but "Chiikawa" held a 0.9 percentage-point edge in revenue share.

The two films swapped positions within a week. During the National Foundation Day holiday the previous weekend, "Assassin(s)" led with about 520,000 viewers while "Chiikawa" came in second with about 477,000. Both films saw attendance fall over the Hangul Day holiday weekend, but "Chiikawa" recorded a smaller decline.

"Chiikawa" is based on a popular manga by Japanese artist Nagano. The story follows Chiikawa and friends who are lured to a mysterious island by the promise of "100 times the reward," only to encounter the secrets hidden there. The franchise has won fans with its world of small, adorable characters grinding through a harsh reality, and in South Korea it has built a devoted following under the nickname "Meonjak-gwi," a Korean shorthand for "something small and cute."

Popularity built around character merchandise and pop-up stores carried over into movie theaters. The film drew 122,293 viewers on its opening day, the highest opening-day figure for any animated film released this year. In Japan, where it opened July 24, it surpassed 10 million admissions within 52 days of release.

"Assassin(s)," starring Yoo Hae-jin, Park Hae-il and Lee Min-ho, follows the investigation into the allegations and possible hidden forces behind the shooting of first lady Yuk Young-soo at a Liberation Day ceremony on Aug. 15, 1974. Authorities at the time concluded that Moon Se-gwang had acted alone, but the film's hypothesis of a possible additional mastermind drew criticism from some political circles over alleged historical distortion.

The production team issued a statement on Sept. 28 saying the film "does not identify any specific individual as the mastermind behind the incident, nor does it present the hypotheses and dramatic elements in the film as historical fact." Producer Hive MEDIAcorp canceled stage greetings in both the second and third weeks of release, citing audience safety concerns. Even as promotional activities came to an effective halt, "Assassin(s)" surpassed 3 million cumulative admissions on Monday, its 20th day in theaters.

Third place went to "Tazza: Song of Beelzebub," which drew about 190,000 viewers over the three-day weekend for a 14.0 percent revenue share. The fourth installment in the series based on cartoonist Heo Young-man's manhwa "Tazza," it opened Sept. 23 and has accumulated about 1,744,000 admissions.

Director Christopher Nolan's "Odyssey" came in fourth with about 95,000 viewers, while "Resurrection Man: The Red," starring Koo Kyo-hwan, placed fifth with about 49,000. "Resurrection Man: The Red" is based on a webtoon of the same name about a job-seeker who comes back to life 72 hours after dying.

Sixth place went to director Hirokazu Kore-eda's "Look Back," which opened Thursday and drew about 41,000 viewers in its first weekend. The live-action adaptation is based on manga by Tatsuki Fujimoto, who also created "Chainsaw Man," and depicts the friendship and growth of two girls brought together by their love of drawing. A 2024 animated adaptation of the same source material drew 320,000 viewers in South Korea.

"Chiikawa" also leads in advance ticket sales. As of 9 a.m. Monday, it held a 30.5 percent advance booking rate with about 50,000 tickets sold, ranking first. "Odyssey" followed with 15.6 percent and about 25,000 tickets. A domestically produced animated film set to open Wednesday had secured about 16,000 advance tickets for third place. The film is an adaptation of a webtoon by artist Gaspard, produced by animation studio Locus.