Moviegoers at a theater in Seoul where “Avengers: Endgame” is playing. (Yonhap)
SEOUL, May 1 (Korea Bizwire) — Just five days since its grand opening, “Avengers: Endgame” has already drawn than 6.3 million audience members in South Korea, in part thanks to Marvel fans returning to watch the movie multiple times.
Many South Korean moviegoers are returning to the cinema to re-watch the final moments of the Marvel heroes and the so-called ‘Easter eggs’ that the director himself hid within the movie.
According to the CGV Research Center, more than 5 percent of the audience members returned to watch the movie more than once.
Starting off at 2.2 percent on the day the movie hit the cinemas, the return rate has more than doubled over the past weekend, surpassing the record set by “Bohemian Rhapsody”’s 2.7 percent in the first week of its release.
Among films that sold more than 10 million tickets in South Korea, “Avengers: Infinity War” (2018) recorded an 8.2 percent return rate, compared to 5.3 percent for “Avengers: Age of Ultron” (2015), 8.1 percent for Frozen, and 7.5 percent for “The Admiral: Roaring Currents.”
Cinemas are holding various promotion events to entice customers to return and watch the movie again.
CGV offers free tickets to customers who have watched the Avengers multiple times. Lotte Cinema is giving out original posters to 5,000 customers who have watched the movie more than five times.
Megabox is also giving out variety of goods, including an Avengers Minicar, to customers who have watched the movie more than twice.
Some experts, however, are concerned that the massive popularity of the Avengers series is leading cinemas to turn a blind eye to the dangers of screen monopoly.
The “Avengers: Endgame” was shown at more than 2,800 cinemas last weekend, attracting more than 3.1 million spectators.
The movie is being shown on almost 80 percent of the available screens across the country, and is responsible for an average of 83.5 percent of all seats.
H. M. Kang (hmkang@koreabizwire.com)
