Netflix released films to be screened in local CGV theaters

Due to the COVID-19 situation, some Korean movies have chosen to skip their theatrical release and gone straight to Netflix. But now, these movies will be screened in local CGV theaters, according to Netflix on Wednesday.

Last year amid the pandemic, the number of people who visited local theaters plunged 74 percent from the previous year. It was the greatest decline since the Korean Film Council started compiling box office data in 2004. This drop led thriller “Time to Hunt,” directed by Yoon Sung-hyun, to choose Netflix over a theatrical release in April last year. It was the first Korean movie to take this route.

During the special screening event, “Netflix In CGV”, which will be held from Sept. 1 to 12 jointly by Netflix and local multiplex operator CJ CGV, seven movies, including “Time to Hunt,” horror flick “The Call,” directed by Lee Chung-hyun, sci-fi film “Space Sweepers,” directed by Jo Sung-hee, and “Night in Paradise,” directed by Park Hoon-jung, will be screened in 80 local CGV theaters.

“CGV and Netflix met halfway and decided to screen Netflix movies that audiences want to see in theaters while creating a new cooperative model that satisfies not only theater and OTT (over-the-top) operators, but also filmmakers and audiences,” a CGV official said in a statement.

The proceeds from the special screening will be used for one of Netflix’s long-term corporate social responsibility projects that aims to preserve Korean classic films created over the last 10 decades.

Tickets for the event will be open for booking starting Thursday, and more details are available on CGV’s website and mobile app.

Netflix, which operates in more than 190 countries worldwide, entered Korea in 2016. It is currently the top streaming platform operator here, with more than 40 percent of the market share, followed by Korean platforms Wavve and Tving.

By Song Seung-hyun (ssh@heraldcorp.com)