Jo Jung-suk’s gender-bending comedy ‘Pilot’ sells 1m tickets in 4 days

“Pilot,” a South Korean comedy flick about an unemployed former pilot disguising himself as a woman to get a new role, has attracted over 1 million moviegoers since the movie’s release on July 31.

According to the Korean Film Council data, the movie has attracted an accumulated 1.33 million moviegoers in four days since its opening here. The movie attracted 441,537 moviegoers on Saturday alone, leading the local box office.

A trusted name in comedy flicks, actor Jo Jung-suk stars as male pilot Han Jung-woo, who, after getting fired from his job and divorced by his wife, is now searching for a new job. Out of desperation, he disguises himself as a woman to get a position at Han Air, a company seeking a female pilot.

The movie is a remake of the Swedish movie “Cockpit” (2012).

Versatile acting from Han Sun-hwa, who appears as Jung-mi, Jung-woo’s younger sister and YouTube beauty content creator, as well as Oh Min-ae’s portrayal of An-ja, Jung-woo’s mom and a diehard fan of trot singer Lee Chan-won, are very down-to-earth and relatable.

At the weekend box office, “Pilot” was followed by Marvel Studios’ first R-rated superhero flick “Deadpool & Wolverine” (accumulated 1.58 million admissions). Universal Pictures’ “Despicable Me 4” (1.09 million admissions) and Disney and Pixar’s “Inside Out 2” (8.5 million admissions) came in third and fourth rank.

Korean action drama flick “Escape” ranked fifth with an accumulated 2.4 million moviegoers.