'The King's Warden' easily tops 13 million viewers, attention turns to its final tally

The period film "The King's Warden," which has sparked a "King Danjong of Joseon" craze, has easily crossed the 13 million-viewer mark.
According to distributor Showbox on the 15th, "The King's Warden" surpassed a cumulative audience of 13 million at around 9 a.m. that day, extending its box-office hot streak.
So far, only 10 films have topped 13 million admissions: "The Admiral: Roaring Currents" (17.61 million), "Extreme Job" (16.26 million), "Along with the Gods: The Two Worlds" (14.41 million), "Ode to My Father" (14.25 million), "Avengers: Endgame" (13.93 million), "Frozen II" (13.74 million), "Avatar" (13.62 million), "Veteran" (13.41 million), "12.12: The Day" (13.12 million), and "The Host" (13.01 million). With this, "The King's Warden" is virtually guaranteed a spot in the all-time top 10.
Among Korean films, this places it in eighth place. Looking only at historical dramas, it is now the second-highest-grossing title after "The Admiral: Roaring Currents." Other period films that have drawn more than 10 million viewers include "Masquerade" (2012, 12.31 million) and "The King and the Clown" (2005, 12.30 million).
"The King's Warden," which opened on the 4th of last month, attracted 10 million viewers by its 31st day in theaters on the 6th. It then surpassed 12 million on the 36th day, the 11th, and went on to break the 13 million mark even before the weekend was over, underscoring the intensity of audience interest.
On Saturday the 14th alone, more than 554,000 people watched the film, following over 221,000 on Friday the 13th. With its box-office momentum still strong, many in the industry expect the cumulative audience to exceed 14 million sometime next week, giving the film a strong shot at entering the all-time top five.
jsm64@fnnews.com Jung Soon-min Reporter