Local horror thriller, Gonjiam: Haunted Asylum landed on top of the South Korean box office, reported Variety. Since opening on Wednesday, the Showbox release earned $10.2 million from 1.37 million admissions, including $492,000 earned from previews. It accounted for 40% of the total weekend box office.
Steven Spielberg’s Ready Player One could only manage second place. Also opening on Wednesday, the Warner Bros. release earned $8.09 million, accounting for 33% of the weekend box office revenue.
South Korean distributor Showbox pre-sold the horror film Gonjiam: Haunted Asylum to 47 countries, including to Well Go USA for North America, Screen Daily had previously reported.
The film takes place at the former Gonjiam Psychiatric Hospital, which was selected as one of CNN Travel’s ’7 freakiest places on the planet’.
According to local legend, the asylum was shut down after a series of mysterious patient deaths in the 90s. In the film, an internet broadcaster recruits a handful of people for a live-streaming, ‘experience the horror’ show at there and things spin out of control.
Directed by Jung Bum-shik (Horror Stories, Epitaph), it was produced by Hive Mediacorp. It features Wi Ha-jun, Park Ji-hyun, Oh Ah-yeon, Mun Ye-won, Park Sung-hun, Lee Seung-wook and Yoo Je-yoon.
