The Korean box office gave domestic films a 73.1% share and 3.91 million admissions in the fourth week of September, with The Assassin(s) at number one and Tazza: The Song of Beelzebub second, according to the Korean Film Council (KOFIC). The two Chuseok openings ended the six-week run of The Odyssey at the top.
Updated 07:07 CET, 26 October 2026: adds Tazza passing 2 million admissions, the five-week hold, the audience make-up, and a correction to the film’s English title.
Key facts
- Domestic films took 73.1% of the Korean market and 3.91 million admissions in the fourth week of September (KOFIC).
- The Assassin(s) led the chart; Tazza: The Song of Beelzebub was second, ending The Odyssey’s six weeks at number one.
- Both films opened over the Chuseok holiday.
- Tazza: The Song of Beelzebub passed 2 million cumulative admissions on 26 October, its fifth week out (CHOSUNBIZ, KOBIS).
- It is the only adults-only 2026 Korean release to clear 2 million.
The hold is now the story. When we first reported the week, the open question was whether two films arriving together would fade once the first wave of holiday demand passed. Five weeks on, the answer for one of them is clear. Tazza: The Song of Beelzebub crossed 2 million cumulative admissions on 26 October, a day after it entered the year’s top seven highest-grossing Korean films, according to CHOSUNBIZ, citing the integrated ticketing system. Among 2026 Korean releases, it is the only adults-only title to reach that mark, a notable result for a rating that locks out under-19s.
That staying power is unusual for a genre sequel. The film, which the distributor presents as the final entry in the 20-year Tazza series, drew audiences for five straight weeks, with CHOSUNBIZ reporting a 93% CGV “Golden Egg” satisfaction score, the highest among competing releases. By the same booking data, viewers aged 30 and under made up about 60% of the audience, and people in their thirties were the single largest group at 31%. A word-of-mouth hold among younger audiences, rather than a big opening alone, is what carried it past 2 million.
A note on the name. We earlier rendered the title as Tazza: Belzebub’s Song. KOBIS, the official Korean film database, gives the English title as Tazza: The Song of Beelzebub, and we have corrected it here. The film stars Byun Yo-han and Roh Jae-won, with the rapper Swings in his first acting role; it opened alongside The Assassin(s), the week’s number one.
The wider point we made still stands: the biggest attendance story in a given market is often a local one, and a healthy domestic chart is a reason to read a territory’s own slate before importing a global theory about cinema-going. Korea’s week was built on specific films landing at once over a holiday, not on a general recovery, which is exactly why the hold matters more than the opening. For how release strategy and local positioning shape a run, see our look at an import changing shape in a new territory, and for a catalogue title that earned most of its money away from its home market, our report on Endgame’s reissue. The distribution question that ties them together is set out in who is actually taking films to audiences.
Our reading
For a buyer or programmer, the lesson is in the shape of the curve, not the opening weekend. Tazza’s result came from a long hold driven by younger audiences and strong word of mouth, under a rating that usually caps reach. That is a more useful signal than a big first day: it suggests a film people recommended rather than one they rushed. The next evidence to watch is the final cumulative total and whether The Assassin(s) showed the same legs or simply a bigger start; the two together will say whether late September was a holiday spike or a genuine run of local strength.