4 Korean Movies Failed Despite Starring Top Actors
Receiving high expectations for their luxury cast lineups, these movies ended up showing poor box-office performances
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Alienoid
None of the two parts of “Alienoid” was able to gain box-office success. Surprising viewers after introducing a splendid cast with Ryu Jun-yeol, Kim Tae-ri, Kim Woo-bin, Lee Ha-nee, Yeom Jung-ah, Jo Woo-jin, Kim Eui-sung and Jin Sun-kyu with a huge production cost of 37 billion won for each part, the movie series needed to sell 14 million tickets to reach the break-even point. However, it recorded only 3 million viewers in total for both movies.
In addition, “Alienoid” also received negative reviews from Korean media in terms of quality. The Korea Herald called it “a chaotic story”, while Hankook Ilbo commented, “Although the latter part was better than the first one, the stories with too many characters from different timelines easily made viewers confused”.
Broker
“Broker” was one of the most anticipated Korean movies in 2022 as it was directed by famous Japanese director Kore-eda Hirokazu. Starring trustworthy actors such as Song Kang-ho, Kang Dong-won, Lee Ji-eun (IU) and Lee Joo-young, the movie even received an invitation to compete for the Palme d’Or at the Cannes Film Festival.
However, “Broker” gained only 1.26 million admissions after its premiere in theaters, lower than its break-even point of 1.5 million admissions. However, some said this result was understandable considering the heavy story.
Emergency Declaration
Attracting huge attention in 2021 by starring top actors such as Song Kang-ho, Lee Byung-hun and Jeon Do-yeon, “Emergency Declaration” depicts two narratives simultaneously, one about a flight with 150 passengers in confusion and one about people on the ground, including aviation staff, the passengers’ family members, politicians and the police, trying to help the plane land safely.
Telling a thrilling survival story, the drama, unfortunately, failed to captivate viewers and ended up selling only 2 million tickets although it needed 5 million tickets to reach the break-even point. Many viewers complained that the script was too old and boring that even the actors’ excellent acting couldn’t save it.
Wonderland
Casting Tang Wei, Bae Suzy, Park Bo-gum, Jung Yoo-mi and Choi Woo-seok, “Wonderland” has just premiered earlier in June but it is already considered a failed movie. 6 days after its premiere, the film sold only 490.000 tickets. At this rate, it is very difficult for “Wonderland” to surpass 2.9 million admissions to reach its break-even point. The movie also faces the possibility of leaving theaters early and significant losses. Among the reviews, the majority of viewers pointed out its script with too many unreasonable details and developments.
