The film 'The King's Warden' led the Korean film industry in the first quarter of 2026.
According to the 2026 first-quarter Korean film industry report released by the Korean Film Council on the 29th, the total theater revenue for the first quarter of 2026 reached 318 billion won, with a total of 31.9 million moviegoers. This marks the highest first-quarter figure since 2020, when the COVID-19 pandemic began.
Driven by the massive success of 'The King's Warden,' which recorded over 15 million viewers, revenue increased by 58.7% (117.7 billion won) and the number of moviegoers increased by 53.2% (11.08 million) compared to the same period last year.
In the first quarter of 2026, Korean films achieved a 73.4% revenue share, bolstered by the 10-million-viewer success of 'The King's Warden' and the long-running popularity of the mid-budget film 'Once We Were Us.' Korean film revenue for the first quarter of 2026 reached 233.3 billion won, with 24.01 million viewers, more than doubling compared to the same period last year, with revenue up 117.5% (126.1 billion won) and viewers up 115.1% (12.85 million). Compared to the first-quarter average before the COVID-19 pandemic (2017 - 2019), Korean film revenue showed a recovery rate of 94.5%, with viewer numbers at 79.7%.
Foreign film revenue and viewer numbers in the first quarter of 2026 showed a decline for the third consecutive year. While 'Avatar: Fire and Ash' and 'Project Hail Mary' performed well, particularly in special format theaters, they did not reach the performance levels of the first quarter of 2025, when films like 'Mickey 17' and 'Captain America: Brave New World' were released. In the first quarter of 2026, foreign film revenue was 84.7 billion won, with 7.89 million viewers, a decrease of 9.0% (8.4 billion won) in revenue and 18.3% (1.77 million) in viewers compared to the same period last year.
'The King's Warden' took the number one spot in total box office performance for the first quarter of 2026, recording 151.8 billion won in revenue and 15.73 million viewers. Notably, it set a major record by surpassing the box office performance of 'Extreme Job' to become the all-time number one film by revenue, leading the entire film market for the first quarter.
Following this, 'Avatar: Fire and Ash' took second place at the 2026 first-quarter box office with 26.5 billion won in revenue and 2.18 million viewers. Notably, 'Avatar: Fire and Ash' ranked first in special format theater revenue, with such screenings accounting for 49.9% (13.2 billion won) of its total revenue.
In terms of distributor rankings, Showbox, which distributed three films including 'The King's Warden' and 'Once We Were Us,' ranked first in the first quarter of 2026 with 176.3 billion won in revenue (a 55.4% revenue share). Second place went to Walt Disney Company Korea, which distributed five films including 'Avatar: Fire and Ash,' 'Zootopia 2,' and 'Hoppers,' recording 43.1 billion won in revenue (a 13.6% revenue share).
(SBS Entertainment News | Kim Ji-hye)