For the weekend of October 23-25, 'Chiikawa the Movie: The Secret of the Mermaid Island' proved to be an unstoppable force, capturing nearly 45% of the total nationwide ticket revenue. The animated fantasy, distributed by Toho and directed by Kei Oikawa, added a significant $2.5 million from 320,293 admissions across 1,115 screens, according to data from the Korean Film Council's KOBIS tracking service. Its cumulative haul in South Korea now stands at an impressive $17.5 million from over 2.2 million admissions since its September 30 launch, solidifying its status as a major success adapted from Nagano’s popular manga.

Following in second place was Hur Jin-ho's political thriller, 'The Assassin(s).' Despite ongoing political controversy and legal challenges over allegations of historical distortion regarding its depiction of state involvement in the 1974 assassination attempt on President Park Chung-hee, the film continues to perform. It secured $520,822 from 68,241 admissions, bringing its total to $25 million from over 3.3 million tickets since its September 23 release. The production has even sparked a joint statement from 19 film guilds defending cinematic freedom, as reported by Variety.

Making a notable entry at number three was 'Paradise Lost,' the latest offering from acclaimed director and co-writer Yeon Sang-ho, known for hits like 'Train to Busan.' The CJ Entertainment psychological thriller, starring Kim Hyun-joo and Bae Hyun-sung, generated $502,962 from 66,699 admissions in its opening weekend, securing an 8.9% market share. The film, which premiered globally at the Toronto International Film Festival, follows a desperate mother's search for her missing son within a closed religious community. Since its mid-week rollout on October 21, it has accumulated $769,865.

Warner Bros. and DC Studios' 'Clayface' also debuted, landing in fourth place with $388,947 from 48,245 admissions. The film, which opened on October 21, has already garnered $595,460.

Rounding out the top five was CJ ENM’s gambling drama 'Tazza: The Song of Beelzebub.' In its fifth weekend, the fourth installment of the 'Tazza' franchise took in $371,743, pushing its total gross to $15.3 million and nearing the two million admissions mark. Other new entries included Plus M Entertainment’s period drama 'Still Shining' at sixth place and Amazon MGM Studios and Warner Bros.’ psychological thriller 'Verity' at eighth.

Universal's long-running tentpole 'The Odyssey' continued its impressive run in seventh place, now in its twelfth weekend, with a cumulative haul of $106.2 million. Director Kore-eda Hirokazu’s live-action manga drama 'Look Back' secured ninth place, while the domestic action thriller 'Killing Time' completed the top ten. The overall market saw a slight dip, with a collective gross of $5.6 million for the weekend, down from $6.7 million the previous week.