South Korea's box office revenue grew 41.9% year-on-year in the first half of 2026, according to figures from the Korean Film Council (KOFIC), with the recovery driven overwhelmingly by domestic productions. The King's Warden, a period drama from director Jang Hang-jun, emerged as the standout success, becoming the highest-grossing Korean film of all time and the first domestic release in two years to surpass 10 million admissions, cementing a strong rebound for the local industry after years of pandemic-era disruption.

Total revenue for the January-to-June period reached $396.6M, up from $279M a year earlier, while admissions rose 34.2% to 57 million; Korean films alone posted an 81.7% jump in revenue to $254M, taking almost two-thirds of the overall market. The King's Warden topped the chart with $111.7M from 16.9 million admissions, followed by Yeon Sang-ho's zombie thriller Colony and horror title Salmokji: Whispering Water. Foreign releases fared more modestly, with Project Hail Mary the top import at $22.6M ahead of Avatar: Fire and Ash and Michael, while Showbox led distributors with a 48.6% market share and special-format screenings such as IMAX and Dolby Cinema saw revenue climb 56.3%.