Baek Byung-yeul is a journalist at The Korea Times focused on cultural content, including films and cultural events in South Korea. You can contact him at baekby@koreatimes.co.kr to share your insights.
Why are Korean movies gaining ground in Southeast Asia?
Dahyun, also a member of K-pop band TWICE, signs autographs for fans during the premiere event of her movie “You Are the Apple of My Eye” in Jakarta, Indonesia, last weekend. The actor visited Indonesia from Feb. 8 to 11 to promote the upcoming film. Courtesy of Studio Take
By Baek Byung-yeul
Hallyu stars, engaging narratives drive success
Korean movies are gaining immense popularity in Southeast Asian countries such as Thailand, Indonesia and the Philippines. Experts highlight the region’s deep enthusiasm for Korean cultural content, making it an indispensable part of the global expansion of K-content.
With the film industry slowing down due to the rise of streaming platforms, movies starring top stars who are widely known overseas are targeting international markets, especially Southeast Asian audiences, who are fans of hallyu, or the Korean wave.
"Dark Nuns," starring Song Hye-kyo, is the most recent example of the popularity of Korean films in this region.
Its distributor, NEW, said the occult film topped the box office in the Philippines for two consecutive weeks. In Indonesia, it achieved the highest opening day ever for a Korean film and quickly surpassed the 1 million viewer mark. The film is also scheduled for release in Singapore, Malaysia and Vietnam.
The upcoming teen romance film "You Are the Apple of My Eye" is also strengthening marketing activities in Southeast Asia, especially in Indonesia, with its lead actors Dahyun of TWICE and Jinyoung, formerly of B1A4, recently visiting Jakarta to meet with the media and fans.
Its production company, Studio Take, said the remake of the 2011 Taiwanese film of the same name featured promotional activities, including a premiere event held from Saturday to Tuesday, which received overwhelming enthusiasm from many fans.
"Their fan service at this event was unprecedented. We were able to realize the two actors' love for their fans through active communication, and the fans responded warmly, leaving a deep impression," said the local Indonesian distributor, as quoted by Studio Take.
Actor Ha Jung-woo in a scene from "Nocturnal" / Courtesy of Barunson E&A
Another Korean film "Nocturnal," starring Ha Jung-woo, who is widely known globally through Netflix's hit series "Narco-Saints," was released in Thailand on Feb. 6 and is scheduled to be released in Singapore and Malaysia on Feb. 27 and in the Philippines on March 26.
An industry official said that hallyu still holds significant influence in Southeast Asia, and due to its high popularity, many Korean films are targeting exports to the region.
"In my opinion, the trust and belief in the K-content market is still solid in the Southeast Asian market. The filmmakers are trying to make films with fresh themes to stimulate overseas audiences as we saw the great success in the 2024 hit film 'Exhuma,'" the official said on condition of anonymity.
Actor Song Hye-kyo in a scene from "Dark Nuns" / Courtesy of NEW
Another official said that in terms of revenue diversification, Southeast Asia is now an indispensable region for Korean films.
"Movies with large budgets must take into account overseas markets as well as the domestic market (for profitability), and when considering overseas markets, Southeast Asia is critical. There are many cases of remaking Korean films in these countries as well," the official said.
Sorasitch Leelanukij, a content creator for the Thailand-based news outlet The Standard, said that Korean stars, who are well-known in the region, are one of the reasons why these films are attracting attention.
In particular, he cited Song, widely known to Thai fans through Netflix's hit series "The Glory."
"The hallyu phenomenon, which has been building for decades with Korean pop culture (from dramas and movies to K-pop) gaining a massive following in Southeast Asia," he told The Korea Times.
"This long-term exposure means audiences are already primed to enjoy high-quality Korean content. Also, the actress Song Hye-kyo is quite well known to Thai people from 'The Glory' series. So I think these are two of the reasons 'Dark nuns' is becoming popular in Thailand and Southeast Asia."