"Emergency Declaration" distributor who lost the box office, Susa request for reverse viral controversy "discovers the situation of spreading evil"
Showbox confirmed the various articles and ratings posted on Online before and after the release of the Emergency Declaration for about a month, saying, "We have found that the forces for the purpose of profit, which is a Hispanic site, have spread and reproduced some posts in a specific way in order to create a malicious evaluation of the film as mainstream public opinion."
“Audiens’ voices should not be used or distorted for the benefit of a specific force’s Historic site,” he said, adding that “if there is a force with an unjust intention, this must be clarified.”
“We will humbly accept Audience’s criticism of the film, but if the forces for the benefit of the Historic site are involved in the flow, we will respond firmly,” he said. “We hope that the Susa agency will identify the truth and punish the crime if the crime of a specific force is revealed.”
“Audien’s high-quality criticism has played a major role in the brilliant development of Korean films in the world,” he said. “And in the freedom of expression before all of that, Audience’s opinion should be respected for anything.”
At the time, there was a suspicion that a company intentionally posted a bad review on Online, and Showbox said, "We have already received several reports and collected relevant information before the suspicion comes up to Online."
“We have received a report from several informants in and out of the film industry that malicious postings are spreading in a specific way from the day after the release of the Emergency Declaration,” Showbox said. “We have been checking various articles and ratings posted on Online before and after the release for about a month, judging that the content has been consistently and reliable.”
Directed by Han Jae-rim, the film tells the story of a biochemical attack on an aircraft bound for Hawaii in the U.S., starring actors Song Kang-ho, Lee Byung-hun, Jeon Do-yeon, Kim Nam-gil and Lim Si-wan. It is an aviation disaster movie with a net production cost of 26 billion won, but it is only about 2 million Audience, which is less than half of the break-even point.
Showbox has argued that Emergency Declaration has been hit by a reverse viral attack. The company, suspected of doing this, also suggested that it did not invest only in the Emergency Declaration of the masterpiece Korean movies released during the peak season this summer.