Love on the Menu surges to 13 percent as weekend dramas reach series highs
Plus: Hope shatters 3 million admissions at the Korean box office and Song Kang returns to Netflix after military service.
TL;DR
- Love on the Menu jumps to 13 percent, leading multiple dramas to series highs as summer season peaks.
- Hope surpasses 3 million admissions and extends its command of the Korean box office this month.
- Song Kang returns to Netflix in August's Four Hands, Two Sonatas, his first K-drama since military discharge.
- The Journey to Gyeongju premieres August 26 with an ensemble cast seeking justice and revenge.
On air now
Multiple dramas surge to series highs
Love on the Menu leads with 13 percent as the weekend lineup enters peak performance.
Love on the Menu jumped to 13.0 percent nationwide for its second episode, a substantial climb from its Saturday, July 25 premiere on KBS2. The 50-episode romantic drama starring Ha Seok-jin and Hani continues building its audience. (via Soompi)
Spooky in Love reaches series peak. The tvN supernatural romance posted 5.8 percent nationwide for its fourth episode, a steady climb since its July 18 global Netflix simulcast with Park Eun Bin and Yang Se Jong. (via Soompi)
The Husband nears finale on a high. KBS2's romance hit 7.3 percent nationwide with Namkoong Min and Lee Seol as the weekend race tightens heading into the show's final weeks. (via Soompi)
The Apartment Job holds ground. JTBC's thriller series earned 5.2 percent nationwide for its latest episode across an increasingly crowded weekend grid. (via Soompi)
Casting and line-ups
Song Kang returns to Netflix after military service
The actor makes his post-discharge comeback in Four Hands, Two Sonatas opposite Lee Jun Young.
Song Kang makes his post-military K-drama return in Netflix's Four Hands, Two Sonatas, premiering August 29. The music romance pairs him with Lee Jun Young as rival pianists at an elite school, with Kang playing a perfectionist prodigy who hides anxiety beneath his flawless technique. (via Soompi)
Premieres and dates
Revenge thriller heads to theaters in August
The Journey to Gyeongju unites four actresses for Kim Mi-jo's commercial feature debut.
The Journey to Gyeongju releases August 26 with an ensemble led by Lee Jeong-eun, Kong Hyo-jin, Park So-dam, and Lee Yeon. Director Kim Mi-jo's commercial feature follows a mother and three daughters traveling to seek justice for their youngest family member who disappeared during a school trip eight years prior. The film blends tragedy, revenge, and family bonds with tragicomic depth. (via Korea Times)
Korean film
Hope shatters 3 million admissions milestone
Na Hong-jin's sci-fi thriller extends its reign atop the Korean box office.
Na Hong-jin's Hope surpassed 3.4 million admissions and held the number-one position at the Korean box office through the weekend of July 24-26. The international ensemble sci-fi survival thriller with Hwang Jung-min, Zo In-sung, and Jung Ho-yeon generated 767,365 admissions over three days with a 66.8 percent share of total market revenue. (via Korea Times)