'The Merciless' tops S. Korean box office on opening day

The crime action film "The Merciless" took the top place at the South Korean box office on its opening day, data showed Thursday.The movie starring Seol Kyung-goo and Im Si-wan sold 95,261 tickets Wednesday, according to the computerized tally from the Korean Film Council. (Yonhap)"The Merciless" is about the friendship and betrayal between Jae-ho, played by Seol, plotting to become the leader of an organized crime ring after being released from prison, and the organization's fearless and ebulli

May 18, 2017

'Produce 101' reigns over TV chart for fifth week

Season two of "Produce 101," Mnet's idol survival show, topped a benchmark TV popularity index for the fifth straight week, data showed Tuesday.It scored 267.6 points on the Content Power Index, becoming the most popular TV program from May 1-7.(Yonhap)CPI, developed by entertainment company CJ E&M and Nielsen Korea, measures the popularity of TV shows based on the number of views of related news stories, online search tallies and buzz on social media.In the survival audition show launched in 20

May 16, 2017

'Alien: Covenant' takes weekend win from 'Guardians 2' in S. Korea

The Hollywood film "Alien: Covenant" took the top place from "Guardians of the Galaxy Vol. 2" in its first weekend at the South Korean box office, data showed Monday.The latest from Ridley Scott sold 524,613 tickets during the May 12-14 weekend, taking the throne on the weekend box office chart according to the computerized tally from the Korean Film Council. (20th Century Fox Korea)Released on Tuesday, the sixth in the Alien series has amassed 959,462 viewers until Sunday, staying on top of the

May 15, 2017

BTS' 'Not Today' tops Billboard's Twitter chart

South Korean boy band BTS, also known as Bangtan Boys, soared to No. 1 on Billboard's music chart that tracks shares and mentions of songs on Twitter, according to the publication Monday.According to Billboard's website, the band's 2017 song "Not Today" stood at the top of this week's Billboard Twitter Top Tracks, climbing 23 steps from the previous week. "Sweet Creature" by Harry Styles and Niall Horan's "Slow Hands" ranked third. (Yonhap)Another BTS song, "Fire," came in fourth.The chart is ra

May 15, 2017

BTS storms Japan's Oricon chart with new mini album

South Korean boy band BTS, also known as Bangtan Boys, rose to No. 1 on a major music chart in Japan with its latest Japanese mini album Thursday, its agency said. (Yonhap)"Blood Sweat & Tears," BTS' seventh Japanese single released Wednesday, topped the Oricon Daily Single Chart, selling over 141,000 copies as of Thursday morning, according to Big Hit Entertainment, the team's management agency.The mini album holds three songs previously released in South Korea -- "Blood Sweat & Tears" from 201

May 11, 2017

'The Villainess' director aimed to capture action that seemed 'impossible'

The director of "The Villainess," one of two South Korean midnight screening films at this year's Cannes Film Festival, said Thursday he tried experimenting with new filming techniques to capture footage that was unprecedented in previous action movies."As opposed to searching out movies to reference, I thought a lot about how I could film at an angle that no one has thought of before," director Jung Byung-gil said at a media event held at the CGV theater in Apgujeong-dong, southern Seoul. (Yonh

May 11, 2017

CNBLUE to release new single in Japan

South Korean idol rock band CNBLUE will unveil its 11th Japanese single album "Shake" on Wednesday, the group's management agency said.(Yonhap)Written and composed by member Jung Yong-hwa, the title piece "Shake" features a light band sound that makes its listeners want to shake their body, FNC Entertainment said. Besides the song, the album includes "Someone Else," also written and composed by Jung, and "Was So Perfect" by Lee Jong-hyun.CNBLUE is scheduled to hold a concert tour of Japanese cit

May 10, 2017

Cannes-bound Korean film pre-sold to 85 countries

The domestic crime-action flick "The Merciless" has been sold to 85 countries around the world before its domestic release, the film's local distributor said Tuesday.  (CJ Entertainment)The film starring Seol Kyung-gu and Im Si-wan is to be shown in the Midnight Screening, an out-of-competition slot in the 70th Cannes Film Festival set to open on May 17.According to the CJ Entertainment, the movie's distribution right was sold to companies in 85 countries, including France, the Netherlands, Belg

May 2, 2017

'Summer queen' Sistar to drop new album next month

(Yonhap)Girl group Sistar, nicknamed "summer queen" for its strength in the season, will release a new album in early June, music sources said Tuesday.The group is now working on the new album with the producing team Black Eyed Pilseung, they said. This is the group's first album since its last EP "Insane Love" out about a year ago. Sistar last collaborated with Black Eyed Philseung for its hit numbers "Touch My Body" and "I Like That."Debuting in June 2010, Sistar has enjoyed popularity for its

May 2, 2017

Actor So Ji-sub wraps up fan meetings in Asia

Actor and rapper So Ji-sub finished his pan-Asia tour to celebrate the 20th anniversary of his debut, his management agency said Tuesday. (Yonhap)The actor met 20,000 fans in eight cities in six Asian countries through the "TWENTY:The Moment" tour that started in Kobe, Japan, on March 25. The tour ended in Seoul on April 29-30, the first such event in the city in three years. At the Seoul event, he shared a series of photos he took with his fans by using a selfie stick."I turned 20 years old in

May 2, 2017

'Produce 101' tops TV charts for three weeks; dramas take backseat

Season two of "Produce 101," Mnet's idol survival show, topped a benchmark TV popularity index for the third straight week, while most big dramas performed sluggishly, data showed Tuesday.The second season of "Produce 101" scored 268 points on the Content Power Index (CPI), becoming the most popular TV program from April 17-23. (Mnet)CPI, developed by entertainment company CJ E&M and Nielsen Korea, measures the popularity of TV shows based on the number of views of related news stories, online s

May 2, 2017

Actor Yoo Ji-tae to cameo in new Lars von Trier film

South Korean actor Yoo Ji-tae will appear in Danish auteur Lars von Trier's upcoming film "The House That Jack Built" as a cameo, the film's Korean distributor said Wednesday. At9 Film said that Yoo finished shooting in late March in Sweden, without specifying the actor's role.  (Yonhap)He is best known to the international audience for his lead role in Park Chan-wook's "Old Boy." Yoo's directorial debut "Mai Ratima" clinched the Jury Prize, the second top honor, at the 2013 Deauville Asian Film

April 27, 2017

Rock icon Jeon In-kwon mired in plagiarism controversy

South Korean rock musician Jeon In-kwon became engulfed in a plagiarism controversy on Wednesday amid allegations part of his hit song, "Don't Worry, My Dear" is similar to a 70s German rock number.A post raising questions about the originality of Jeon's song surfaced on a South Korean internet community.(Yonhap)The post alleged that the chorus of "Don't Worry, My Dear"sounded especially similar to that of Black Fooss' "Drink doch eine met." The title means "let's have a drink" in English.The 62

April 26, 2017

YG signs trainee deal with 11-year-old audition show contestant

YG Entertainment, one of South Korea's leading music labels, has signed a trainee deal with an 11-year-old former contestant on SBS TV's audition show "K-pop Star," the company said Wednesday.(SBS)"We signed with Han Byul, who's shown talent in 'K-pop Star 6.' The trainee is young so she will receive systemic training three to four times week while continuing with school," YG said.Han, who appeared in the final season of the popular SBS TV show earlier this year, is half Korean and half Swedish.

April 26, 2017

Singer-actor Kim Hyun-joong indicted for alleged drunk driving

Prosecutors said Tuesday they have summarily indicted singer-actor Kim Hyun-joong for allegedly driving while under the influence of alcohol last month. (Yonhap)The Seoul Eastern District Prosecutors' Office said it sought a fine of 2 million won (US$1,700) against him. A summary indictment does not require a formal trial. The member of K-pop boy band SS501 was caught on March 26 as he fell asleep for about 15 minutes in his car while waiting for a traffic light to change in southern Seoul, acco

April 25, 2017

Pop diva Lee Eun-mi releases new song 'Albatross'

South Korean pop diva Lee Eun-mi dropped her new song "Albatross" on Tuesday, releasing her first brand new music in three years, her agency said. (Yonhap)The piano-accompanied ballad was released at noon on major streaming services, including Melon, Bugs Music and Olleh Music, according to Neobiz, which represents Lee. The song was written by long-time collaborator Yoon Il-sang, who first worked with Lee on her hit song "I Have A Lover" released in 2004. In October of last year, Lee released he

April 25, 2017

'MAN x MAN' receives heavy media spotlight in China: agency

"MAN x MAN," a new South Korean TV drama starring Park Hae-jin, has received a heavy spotlight from Chinese entertainment outlets despite the show being unavailable in the neighboring country, according to the star's agency Tuesday. (Yonhap)On Monday, entertainment pages of Chinese portals -- including Sina.com, Sohu.com and Eastday.com -- featured stories on the new Friday-Saturday JTBC series as one of their prominent headlines of the day, Mountain Movement, Park's agency, said."MAN x MAN" (pr

April 25, 2017

'Produce 101' tops TV charts for two weeks, dramas taken back

Season two of "Produce 101," Mnet's idol survival show, topped a benchmark TV popularity index for two weeks in a row, while most major weekday dramas fared poorly, data showed Tuesday.The second season of "Produce 101" scored 265.7 points on the Content Power Index (CPI), becoming the most popular TV program from April 10-16. (Mnet)CPI, developed by entertainment company CJ E&M and Nielsen Korea, measures the popularity of TV shows based on the number of views of related news stories, online se

April 25, 2017

IU says she's confident of new album 'Palette'

K-pop singer-songwriter IU on Friday expressed confidence in her new album "Palette" and thanked fans for pushing her pre-released song to No. 1 on music charts despite zero promotional activities. (Yonhap)I had no idea that the pre-released song would be loved this much. I'm so happy that 'Through The Night' reached No. 1 on the music charts even without publicity," IU told reporters at a media event held at the Shinhan Card FAN Square in northern Seoul.IU released her fourth full-length album

April 21, 2017

SBS TV's comedy show apologizes for allegedly disparaging African people

SBS TV's comedy program "People Looking for a Laugh" issued an apology Friday over a skit that many people found offensive and racist.  (Yonhap)In the segment "Real Gag" aired on Wednesday, comedian Hong Hyun-hee colored her face black and dressed up in what appeared to be African tribal dress with a cheetah-print top and a skirt made of cabbage. The skit made crude jokes about her appearance and gave the impression of disparaging people of color.Soon after the segment went on air, it invited an

April 21, 2017