Third-lowest ratio since 2004

The market share of Korean films at the local box office tumbled to slightly over 20 percent last month as foreign movies enjoyed strong popularity among viewers, industry data showed Monday.

Korean films drew 3.33 million moviegoers in July to account for 23.3 percent of the total audience, the Korean Film Council said, noting the ratio was the third-lowest since it started compiling the data in 2004.

Their box office sales stood at 31.6 billion won (US$23.5 million), 22.6 percent of the total.

The July figure plummeted from 64.8 percent from a month earlier, which was led by the Korean action comedy flick The Roundup: No Way Out, released on May 31, which surpassed 10 million admissions.

Foreign films' market share bounced back in July, posting 10.95 million admissions and 108.4 billion won in ticket sales.

The robust performance was led by American spy film series Mission: Impossible -- Dead Reckoning Part One, which arrived at local theaters on July 12, and Pixar Animation Studios' Elemental, released on June 14.

Digital posters for Mission: Impossible -- Dead Reckoning Part One are displayed above a kiosk at a Seoul theater in this file photo taken July 23, 2023. (Yonhap)  

By Kim Eun-jung