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Four weeks after its initial release, South Korean horror film “Exhuma” is still burning through the country’s box office. “Pamyo,” as it’s known in Korea (which directly translates to “exhumation for relocation or cremation”), has resonated in a major way with audiences who have shown up in droves to see the story of a shaman named Hwa-rim (Kim Go-eun) and the wandering spirits she takes on with Bong-gil (Lee Do-hyun), her protégé. This week: it expands in the United States.

Just one week into its release, “Exhuma” became the highest-grossing Korean film of 2024 so far, knocking the Timothée Chalamet-starring “Wonka” off the top spot following its delayed release there. Chalamet’s other big film of the moment, “Dune: Part Two,” placed second in Korea for three successive weekends in the wake of “Exhuma” too.

That means that, nearly a month in, “Exhuma” has made $67.8 million with sales of 9.3 million tickets,...

On the heels of star-making roles in films like “Jeon Woo-chi: The Taoist Wizard” and “Secret Reunion,” Gang Dong-won has been one of the most prominent star actors in South Korean cinema which is the case with his turn in the role of Dr. Cheon in director Kim Seong-sik’s latest effort. Based on Fresh and Kim Hong-tae’s popular webtoon “Possessed” and serving as the opening chapter for its franchise, WellGo USA releases the new genre effort in theaters October 6.

Arriving in a small village, Dr. Cheon (Gang Dong-won) and his technical assistant Inbae (Lee Dong-hwi) are approached by Yoo-kyung (Esom), a young woman asking him to use his fabled Shamanistic powers to help her family. While initially turned off by her serious nature, the monetary payment brings them together to check out the requested case looking at the supposed possession of her younger sister where they live inside their house.