'Fast & Furious 9' draws 400,000 viewers on the first day of release

▲ This photo provided by Universal Pictures shows a scene from the movie "Fast & Furious 9." (PHOTO NOT FOR SALE) (Yonhap)

SEOUL, May 20 (Yonhap) -- The popular action movie "Fast & Furious 9" drew 400,000 viewers on its first day of release. It is the highest opening record for a single film in South Korea since the start of the pandemic.

According to the Korea Box Office Information System, "Fast & Furious 9," which was released the day before the Buddha's Birthday holiday, attracted 400,312 viewers during the day.

Ever since the COVID-19 outbreak, it is the first time that the number of viewers exceeded 400,000 on the first day of its release.

Last summer, 353,000 people watched "Peninsula" and 344,000 people watched "Deliver Us from Evil." In 2019, "Ashfall, " which was released ahead of the Christmas holidays, recorded 450,000 people on the first day of its release.

"Fast & Furious 9" also broke the pre-booking record. After recording 200,000 pre-orders at 7:10 p.m. the day before it release, it exceeded 250,000 pre-orders at 4:00 a.m. on the actual day, marking the highest record since COVID-19.

"Fast & Furious 9," the ninth movie out of the series, presents a spectacular action movie that portray the main character Dominic Toretto and his crew battling against the most skilled driver they've ever encountered.

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