Na Hong-jin’s ‘Hope’ has recorded the highest opening box-office revenue of any Korean film released in France in 2026, earning about $800,000 on its opening, Edaily reported on November 4.
The film opened on 192 screens across France, and the report credited the result to positive responses from French media and audiences. The strong start continued into the opening weekend: on Saturday, October 31, ‘Hope’ ranked No. 2 at the Paris box office, with Paris accounting for 31 percent of the film’s total revenue in France.
The European momentum extended beyond France. In Belgium, where the film opened on 38 screens, ‘Hope’ earned about $64,000 on its opening, a figure the report said was well above the opening results of ‘Decision to Leave’ and ‘Burning’ in the same market.
No official statement from the distributor was quoted in the report, and no admissions figures or cumulative French total were disclosed. The record cited is for opening revenue among Korean films released in France in 2026, rather than a cumulative box-office total.
‘Hope’ is Na’s first feature in 10 years since ‘The Wailing,’ following his earlier films ‘The Chaser’ and ‘The Yellow Sea.’ The film premiered at the 79th Cannes Film Festival, and the French report noted that global attention has continued since that premiere. Set in the fictional village of Hope Port near the Demilitarized Zone, the story follows residents tracking an unidentified giant life form in the village before an encounter with an extraterrestrial being.
The cast brings together Hwang Jung-min, Zo In-sung, Jung Ho-yeon and Um Mun-suk alongside Taylor Russell, Cameron Britton, Alicia Vikander and Michael Fassbender. The film has already been a major presence in the Korean awards season, leading the nominations for the 47th Blue Dragon Film Awards with 10 nods, and it began a day-and-date theatrical and VOD release in Korea on October 21.
With a record-setting French opening and a Belgian debut that outpaced two acclaimed predecessors, the next measure of ‘Hope’ abroad will be how its opening-weekend momentum holds as its European run continues.
