How ‘King and the Man’ Surpassed 13.8 Million Viewers: A Deep Dive into the Latest Box Office Sensation

The Man Who Lives with the King, directed by Jang Hang-jun / Photo=Showbox, DB

[By Lim Si-ryeong, Sports Today] ‘The Man Who Lives with the King’ continues to shatter records, displacing long-running box-office hits as it closes in on 14 million admissions.

On the 19th, the Korean Film Council’s integrated box-office system reported that the film drew 124,110 viewers the previous day, bringing its cumulative total to 13,846,269.

Set in 1457 at Cheongnyeongpo, The Man Who Lives with the King centers on the exiled young former king Danjong (Park Ji-hoon), village head Eom Heung-do (Yoo Hae-jin) and the people of their rural community. Critics have praised the cast’s performances and the film’s humane retelling of Danjong’s tragic fate. Thanks to strong word of mouth, it reached the 10 million admissions milestone on the 6th — just 31 days after opening.

The film’s momentum shows no sign of slowing. After passing 10 million, it has toppled records previously held by titles such as Seoul’s Spring, Exhumation and Avatar, marking the first post-pandemic film to reach the 10-million threshold. It also comfortably surpassed Frozen II (13.74 million), vaulting it to sixth on the all-time box-office chart. With roughly a 90,000-admission gap behind Avengers: Endgame (13.93 million) in fifth place, overtaking that mark now appears inevitable.

Crossing 14 million admissions is within reach. The current all-time top rankings are No. 1 Roaring Currents (17,610,000), No. 2 Extreme Job (16,260,000), No. 3 Along with the Gods: The Two Worlds (14,410,000) and No. 4 Ode to My Father (14,250,000). Industry watchers are closely watching to see whether The Man Who Lives with the King will break into the top four.

The film’s tally is roughly 5.3 times the original breakeven target of 2.6 million admissions. OndaWorks’ CEO and director Jang Hang-jun had told the press that 2.6 million was the break-even point, but the movie has since been rewriting the box-office history books.

Jang appeared on MBC’s Son Seok-hee’s Questions 4 on the 18th and admitted he could barely imagine 1.4 million admissions, so 14 million felt unfathomable. \”It feels beyond my capabilities,\” he said. He added that Yoo Hae-jin and his wife, writer Kim Eun-hee, constantly remind him to watch his words. \”I don’t want to be put on a pedestal as some kind of revered master,\” he said. \”I’m not a moral exemplar — that’s neither necessary nor useful. What’s important is that I’m happy,\” he added candidly.

[By Lim Si-ryeong, Sports Today ent@stoo.com]
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