The Korean-Thai horror project "The Medium" topped the advance box-office sales in South Korea, raising hopes for a larger-than-expected success despite a surge in novel coronavirus infections, data showed Wednesday.

The film, revolving around a family experiencing a shamanistic spiritual inheritance in a rural region of Thailand, recorded over 110,000 presold tickets as of 9 a.m., according to data from the Korean Film Council. It hit the local theaters earlier in the day.

It accounted for 50 percent of all tickets reserved at that time, outnumbering the runner-up, "Black Widow" by Marvel Studios with 26.8 percent.

Its presale tickets placed No. 3 among 2021 shows, following "Black Widow," which posted more than 200,000 ticket presales on July 6, a day before its official release, and "F9," with some 160,000 presold tickets in May.

This reflects Korean moviegoers' high anticipation for the film, a collaboration of two horror masters from the two countries -- Na Hong-jin of "The Wailing" (2016) and Banjong Pisathanakun of "Shutter" (2004).

But its presale records were unpredictable as the country has entered into the toughest social distancing this week to curb the new wave of the COVID-19 pandemic.

Under the current distancing guidelines, all movie theaters must close before 10 p.m. and one empty seat must be between two people. (Yonhap)