‘The Assassin(s)’ loses box-office lead as historical controversy intensifies in Korea

The Korean film "The Assassin(s)," which had topped the box office since its release, slipped to second place amid controversy surrounding its historical accuracy, industry data showed Tuesday.

The film drew 67,406 admissions Monday, ranking behind "Tazza: Song of Beelzebub," the final installment in the long-running Korean crime film franchise "Tazza," which attracted 68,913 admissions, according to data from the Korean Film Council.

It marked the first time that "The Assassin(s)" lost its lead since its release on Wednesday.

Inspired by the 1974 assassination attempt on then Korean President Park Chung Hee, which resulted in the death of the first lady, the film follows the pursuit of the mastermind behind the attack.

Directed by Hur Jin-ho, it stars Yoo Hai-jin as a police detective, Park Hae-il as a veteran newspaper journalist and Lee Min-ho as a rookie reporter. Park Jung-min plays Korean-Japanese assassin Moon Se-kwang, who was held responsible for the shooting.

Despite the film's popularity, critics, including lawmakers associated with the main opposition People Power Party, have denounced it for suggesting that Moon may have had accomplices.

While the film does not identify those accomplices specifically, it includes parts in which the protagonists suggest that the government — the presidential office or intelligence authorities — was involved in the planning.

On Monday, the President Park Chung Hee Foundation released a statement expressing deep regret over the film for "distorting a historical tragedy" and called for an official apology and suspension of screenings.

The film's production team, in response, stressed the film was not made to deny or distort historical facts.

"There can be various interpretations and criticism given that the film is based on a historical case that involves actual figures, which we respect," the team said. "But it is not a film made for a specific political purpose […] we ask that the work is only deemed as a creative work."

It remains to be seen whether the controversy will continue to weigh on the film's box-office performance.

As of 10:30 a.m., "The Assassin(s)" accounted for 11.3 percent of advance ticket sales, with more than 56,000 tickets sold. It ranked second only behind the Japanese animation "Chiikawa the Movie: The Secret of the Mermaid Island," according to Kofic data.

Yonhap