Dunkirk has debuted extremely well at the South Korea box office, proving once again Nolan’s ability to do top business in the Asian market.
On its debut weekend, the WWII drama about the evacuation of over 300,000 allied troops, brought in a hugely impressive $10.3 million, which means Korea is the film’s third biggest market behind the US and the UK.
The opening weekend for Dunkirk was one of WB’s biggest ever, beating both Gravity and American Sniper. In fact, only Nolan’s Interstellar opened to bigger numbers.
Christopher Nolan is incredibly popular in South Korea; he has become a director the country has come to anticipate, knowing that they can count on Nolan for a quality product.
“Among film buffs in their 20s and 30s — who make up a large part of the moviegoing demographic — there is absolute confidence in Christopher Nolan films. These fans consider The Dark Knight one of the great modern classics,” film critic and programmer Kim Bong-seok told The Hollywood Reporter. “Korean audiences will trust the quality of Nolan films, regardless of whether one actually likes them or not.”
Interstellar is actually one of South Korea’s top all time earners, bringing in 10 million admissions. This is particularly impressive as the country only contains 50 million people. Interstellar brought in a total of $73.5 million upon release in 2014. It will be worth keeping an eye on just how well Dunkirk can continue to perform in the market.
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“Dunkirk opens as hundreds of thousands of British and Allied troops are surrounded by enemy forces. Trapped on the beach with their backs to the sea they face an impossible situation as the enemy closes in.”
Dunkirk sees Christopher Nolan directing a cast that includes Tom Hardy, Cillian Murphy, Mark Rylance, Kenneth Branagh, Harry Styles, Aneurin Barnard, Jack Lowden, James D’Arcy, Barry Keoghan, Tom Glynn-Carney and newcomer Fionn Whitehead.
Originally published July 26, 2017. Updated April 16, 2018.
