[Edaily Starin YUN GI BACK Reporter] Despite controversy over historical distortion, the film “The Assassin(s)” has reclaimed the No. 1 spot at the box office and is on the verge of surpassing 2 million viewers.

According to the Korean Film Council’s integrated computer network on the 2nd, “The Assassin(s)” topped the box office after drawing 55,018 viewers the previous day. Its cumulative audience count stands at 1,821,963. “Tazza: The Song of Beelzebub,” in second place, drew 49,832 viewers, while “Chiikawa: The Secret of the Mermaid Island” (Theatrical Version), in third place, drew 45,776. With the daily audience difference between first and third place amounting to only about 10,000, the competition for the top spot at the box office remains fierce. “The Assassin(s)” has sparked ongoing controversy over the film’s historical interpretation, leading to heated exchanges within and outside political and film circles. The film takes the 1974 assassination attempt on First Lady Yuk Young-soo as its motif and uses cinematic imagination to reconstruct the stories of the figures involved in the incident. As the controversy has spread, it has also affected the cast members’ public schedules. The Busan International Film Festival canceled the “Actors’ House” event in which actor Lee Min-ho was scheduled to participate. The Korean Film Producers Association also issued a statement the previous day, stating that while criticism and evaluation of the film should be respected, it expressed concern over excessive criticism directed at individual creators—including the production company, director, actors, and staff—as well as the spread of unverified information. Regardless of the controversy, audience turnout continues to be strong. “The Assassin(s)” temporarily lost the top spot due to the release of new films but has since returned to number one and is heading toward the 2 million mark. However, in the ticket pre-sale race, “Chiikawa: The Secret of the Mermaid Island” is far ahead. As of 8 a.m. today, “Chiikawa the Movie: The Secret of Mermaid Island” is leading in advance ticket sales with over 230,000 tickets sold. “Assassins” has sold around 80,000 tickets. Although “The Assassin(s)” led the daily box office, the future landscape of the theater market is likely to fluctuate again depending on competition with new releases.