Japan’s animated phenomenon “Chiikawa the Movie: The Secret of the Mermaid Island” refuses to budge. The Toho-distributed film held the No. 1 spot at the South Korean box office for the third consecutive weekend (Oct. 30–Nov. 1), even as Brad Pitt’s “Heart of the Beast” made its debut.
Chiikawa (Credits: Toho)
According to data from KOBIS, the Korean Film Council’s tracking service, the Chiikawa movie generated $1.7 million from 221,651 admissions across 1,167 screens, claiming 32.1% of the weekend market. Directed by Kei Oikawa and adapted from the popular manga by Nagano, the animated blockbuster has reached a cumulative $20.1 million from 2,583,851 total admissions since its Sept. 30 rollout.
Heart of the Beast Debuts Strong in Korea Box Office
The Brad Pitt survival thriller made a serious dent mid-week. Directed by David Ayer, “Heart of the Beast” stars Pitt as James Belmont, a former Army Special Forces soldier stranded in the remote Alaskan wilderness after a plane crash, fighting to survive alongside his retired military dog, Odin.
On its second day of release (Oct. 29), the film drew 21,474 viewers to top the daily box office, with a cumulative 52,449 admissions — the highest opening score for a foreign film released in Korea in October. It finally broke Chiikawa’s 15-day streak atop the daily charts, though the anime reclaiming the full-weekend crown kept the title.
Brad Pitt and David Ayer Reunite to Critical Acclaim
The film marks a reunion of Pitt and Ayer after “Fury,” and critics have responded warmly — the survival drama holds a 96% critics’ score on Rotten Tomatoes, one of the best-reviewed projects of both Pitt’s and Ayer’s careers. Globally it opened to about $50 million against an $82 million production budget, per Paramount.
With Chiikawa still leading advance ticket sales ahead of the new releases, the anime’s Korean reign may not be over yet. But Pitt’s man-and-dog survival tale has proven to be its fiercest challenger yet.
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Source: Variety — read the full story there.
