"Not just 'Kim Eun-hee's husband' but a hit-making director" – 'The King's Warden' director Jang Hang-jun surpasses 6 million admissions 23 years after debut

[The Financial News] The Lunar New Year release "The King's Warden" has surpassed 6 million admissions.
According to distributor and investor Showbox on the 24th, "The Man Who Lives With the King" reached a cumulative total of 6 million moviegoers on the 23rd, its 20th day in theaters. This is six days faster than the historical drama "The King and the Clown" (10 million admissions, 29 days) and three days faster than the period film "The Throne" (6.24 million admissions, 26 days).
Yoo Hae-jin previously appeared as a scene-stealing supporting actor in "The King and the Clown." Before the release of the new film, he recalled a Q&A session he did with actor Jung Jin-young and director Lee Joon-ik from "The King and the Clown" (2005), saying, "'The King and the Clown' is the movie that allowed me to make 'The Man Who Lives With the King,'" expressing his affection for it. Over the past 20 years, he has firmly established himself in Chungmuro, Korea’s film industry hub, as a reliable leading man and box-office draw.
By contrast, director Jang Hang-jun, who debuted with "Break Out" in 2002, had never before attracted more than 2 million viewers with a single film. Regardless of whether they broke even, "Break Out" drew 1.3 million admissions, while "Forgotten" (2017) brought in 1.38 million. His recent film "Rebound" (2023) fell short of the 1 million mark with 700,000 admissions, and the low-budget independent film "Open the Door" (2023) attracted only 19,000 viewers.
"The King's Warden" is all the more meaningful as it reunites him with Yoo Hae-jin, with whom he first worked on his debut feature "Break Out."
jashin@fnnews.com Shin Jin-ah Reporter