Poster for the film ‘Gunche’. Courtesy of Showbox

The new film ‘Gunche’ by director Yeon Sang-ho is firmly keeping the box-office lead and is squarely targeting a cumulative 5 million admissions this weekend.

According to the integrated movie-ticket admissions network on the 6th, the film ‘Gunche’ drew 117,729 viewers the previous day, retaining the No. 1 box-office spot. Its cumulative admissions stand at 4,241,385.

Released on the 21st of last month, ‘Gunche’ has thus stayed atop the box office for 16 consecutive days. In particular, it surpassed 4 million viewers on the 14th day of release, demonstrating a pace one day faster than the hit ‘A Man Living with the King’, and is expected to comfortably reach the 5 million mark this weekend.

Invited to the Cannes Film Festival Midnight Screening section this year and recognized for its artistry, ‘Gunche’ is set in a supertall building in Seoul amid a mysterious infection outbreak. It tightly portrays survivors battling infected individuals who evolve in unpredictable ways, with powerhouse actors including Koo Kyo-hwan, Ji Chang-wook, Shin Hyun-bin, and Kim Shin-rok delivering explosive synergy.

The film ‘Wild Thing’

Meanwhile, the No. 2 spot at the box office went to the comedy ‘Wild Thing’, starring actor Kang Dong-yeon. It drew 60,413 viewers the previous day, bringing cumulative admissions to 282,947. The film humorously portrays the three-member co-ed dance group ‘Triangle’, which disbanded overnight due to an unexpected incident, embarking on a reckless challenge to seize a comeback opportunity after 20 years.

In third place was the horror film ‘Backroom’, produced by the well-known American independent studio A24 and directed by Kane Parsons, a former YouTuber. Based on an internet urban legend, the film follows people who enter an unknown space; it drew 38,948 viewers the previous day, for cumulative admissions of 638,768.