South Korean director Bong Joon-ho’s dark comedy “Parasite,” the Palme d’Or winner at this year’s Cannes Film Festival, premiers in global theaters after it has done exceptionally well at home, with hopes of winning over international audiences on top of critics.

According to CJ Entertainment on Tuesday, Parasite will be screened in France starting Wednesday and also in Hong Kong, Singapore, Vietnam, Australia, New Zealand and Taiwan within this month. The movie arrives in Russia and Thailand next month and in the Czech Republic and Poland in September.

The North American opening is set for Oct. 11 with an obvious attempt for the Oscar awards.

“No Korean film has been nominated for the international Oscar before, but “Parasite” is so strong it could even blow past that category to factor into directing and screenplay races, if upstart distributor Neon plays its cards right,” reported New York Times.

After the U.S., the film will be screened in other parts of Europe and then finally in Japan in January next year.

Parasite attracted 3.74 million people in just five days of its release in Korea. The film, even prior to its release in Korea, made the headlines as it was sold to 192 countries, a record for Korean films.

Korean distribution company CJ ENM expects Parasite could further raise global awareness for Korean films.

By Park Chang-young and Lee Ha-yeon

[ⓒ Pulse by Maeil Business Newspaper & mk.co.kr, All rights reserved]