Train To Busan sequel sets record on opening day

The zombie action movie Train To Busan: Peninsula is already breaking records.

The highly anticipated sequel to Train To Busan (2016) has set a Singapore opening-day record for a South Korean movie with its takings of $147,000, beating the previous opening-day high of $119,000 set by fantasy action movie Along With The Gods 2: The Last 49 Days (2018).

Train To Busan, the first movie, is third at $75,000. It is the highest-earning South Korean film in Singapore with its box-office total of $5.35 million.

The opening-day performance of the sequel directed by Yeon Sang-ho, starring Gang Dong-won and Lee Jung-hyun, comes despite coronavirus social distancing measures such as a limit of 50 patrons per screening and the requirement for patrons to wear masks.

Train To Busan: Peninsula opened on 97 screens on Wednesday across the island in a period when Hollywood blockbuster releases have been postponed to next month and beyond.

Its strong performance will cheer cinema operators, which had reopened cinemas on Monday, after having closed them on March 27 in a bid to curb the spread of the virus.

Before the closures, there were signs of declining attendance due to worries about infection.