Korea’s All-Time Favorite Crime Busters Return and Head to PH in The Roundup: Punishment

Opens August 14 exclusive at SM Cinemas

The latest installment of Korea’s most-loved action blockbuster The Roundup: Punishment starring Don Lee finally takes its action in the Philippines.

In the borderless action-comedy, The Roundup: Punishment timely touches on the controversies of online gambling, locally known as POGOs (Philippine Offshore Gaming Operators) as it sees the team of Ma Seok-Do (Don Lee) track down one of Korea’s dangerous criminals Baek Chang-gi (Kim Moo-yul) who now operates an online gambling business in the Philippines.

In the Philippines, ex-special forces mercenary Baek Chang-gi monopolizes Korea’s illegal online gambling business by means of abduction, confinement, assault, and even murder. Meanwhile back in Korea, IT genius CEO Chang Dong-cheol (LEE Dong-hwi) is hatching even bigger plans.

In a recent interview with Variety, Lee shared “I want the action to evolve (from film to film) and the story to keep up with current times. It’s important that the characters evolve further, becoming wiser with each sequel.”

Tracing the murder of a young Korean professional who escaped from Chang-gi’s gambling operations, beast cop Seok-do’s team takes on the streets in the Philippines riding jeepneys and forming alliances with the local police. Along with the team is returning character Jang I-su (Park Ji-hwan) disguised as a local who can also communicate in Filipino as he sets up an illegal online casino business to trap the gambling kingpins suspected in the abduction and murder of missing Korean citizens.

The shooting in the Philippines not only magnified the film’s scale but also perfectly captured the reality of borderless, turfless online crime by switching locations back and forth from Korea to the Philippines. While the location of the main villain Baek Chang-gi’s home turf in the film was in the Philippines, the Emperor Casino (the casino Baek runs) and his hideouts were filmed from the various cities of the Philippines such as Angeles and Tarlac City.

Hailed as Korea’s no. 1 action franchise, The Roundup: Punishment has dominated the Korean box- office for four consecutive weeks with a cumulative total of $75 million (source: Variety) since it opened and is now the fastest Korean film to surpass 11 million moviegoers in just 33 days (source: Times of India).

The Roundup series has become Korea’s most-loved crime and action blockbuster series. The action-packed and comedy-filled film created a syndrome for crime blockbusters, becoming the third most-watched rated-R movie in Korea. In the Philippines, The Roundup: Punishment is rated R16 by the MTRCB.

The Roundup franchise has left an unforgettable mark in Korean cinema and has proven that a Korean film series could be successful - with Don Lee’s portrayal of Detective Ma Seok-do known for his signature one-punch action, unique lines, countless parodies of scenes along with the irreplaceable allies and villains.

Distributed by Black Cap Pictures, “The Roundup: Punishment” opens August 14 exclusively at SM Cinemas.

Follow Black Cap Pictures on FB @BlackCapPictures, IG @blackcappictures, YT @BlackCapPictures and on TikTok @blackcappicturesinc.

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A bolder sneak peek at "Joker: Folie à Deux"

“Joker: Folie à Deux” opens only in cinemas, including IMAX, October 2

When you’re smiling, the whole world smiles with you. From acclaimed writer/director/producer

Todd Phillips comes “Joker: Folie à Deux,” the much-anticipated follow-up to 2019’s Academy

Award-winning “Joker,” which earned more than $1 billion at the global box office and remains the

highest-grossing R-rated film of all time. The new film stars Joaquin Phoenix once again in his

Oscar-winning dual role as Arthur Fleck/Joker, opposite Oscar winner Lady Gaga (“A Star Is

Born”). “Joker: Folie à Deux” opens only in cinemas October 2.

Joker: Folie à Deux

“Joker: Folie à Deux” finds Arthur Fleck institutionalized at Arkham awaiting trial for his crimes as Joker. While struggling with his dual identity, Arthur not only stumbles upon true love, but also finds the music that’s always been inside him. Watch the new trailer below.

Todd Phillips, who was nominated for Oscars for directing, writing and producing “Joker,” directed “Joker: Folie À Deux” from a screenplay by fellow Oscar nominee Scott Silver & Phillips, based on characters from DC. The film was produced by Phillips, Oscar nominee Emma Tillinger Koskoff and Joseph Garner. Lady Gaga served as music consultant. The film’s executive producers are Michael E. Uslan, Georgia Kacandes, Silver, Mark Friedberg and Jason Ruder.

Joaquin Phoenix

Lady Gaga

The film stars Oscar winners Joaquin Phoenix as Arthur Fleck/Joker and Lady Gaga as Harley Quinn, as well as Oscar nominees Brendan Gleeson (“The Banshees of Inisherin”) and Catherine Keener (“Get Out,” “Capote”), alongside Zazie Beetz, reprising her role from “Joker.”

In cinemas October 2, “Joker: Folie À Deux” is distributed in the Philippines by Warner Bros. Pictures, a

Warner Bros. Discovery company.

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“IT ENDS WITH US,” the Movie Adaptation to the #1 New York Times Bestselling Novel

#1 New York Times bestselling author Colleen Hoover is excited to share with her fans in the Philippines the big screen adaptation of her romance novel It Ends With Us. The film follows the journey of Lily Bloom (Blake Lively) as she chases her lifelong dream of opening her own business, while she wrestles with childhood trauma and a former flame, and a chance meeting with a charming neurosurgeon that sets off immediate sparks.

Hoover’s It Ends With Us, published in 2016, but it experienced a surge in popularity as it became viral on TikTok from the BookTok community. The book sold over a million copies worldwide, and became the best-selling novel of 2023. “It Ends With Us,” has also been translated into over twenty languages.

Describing the writing process for It Ends With Us, Hoover says that it is the hardest book she’s ever written, as it is based on the relationship between her mother and father. Critics have praised the novel for its handling of difficult topics such as domestic abuse, with The Slate writing, “‘It Ends with Us’ has probably left the most impact on me more than any other book I have read. Reading through this book was an emotional rollercoaster. There were times where I felt angry, sad, happy and giddy. Prior to reading it, I never considered how difficult it is to leave a domestic abuse relationship.”

Watch Lily Bloom’s story unfold on the big screen as It Ends With Us opens in Philippine cinemas on August 7. Directed by Justin Baldoni and produced by Alex Saks, Jamey Heath, Blake Lively and Christy Hall. The film stars Blake Lively, Justin Baldoni, Jenny Slate, Hasan Minhaj, Amy Morton and Brandon Sklenar, from a screenplay by Christy Hall, based on the book by Colleen Hoover.

In cinemas August 7, It Ends with Us is distributed in the Philippines by Columbia Pictures, local office of Sony Pictures Releasing International.

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