The movie 'Despicable Me 4' held a paid preview screening before its official release. The Korean Film Council (hereinafter referred to as KOFIC) criticized it as an irregular release.

'Despicable Me 4' conducted paid preview screenings on the 20th and 21st. The official release date was the 24th. There were a total of 5,090 screenings during the paid previews. The screening share was 12.1%, with seat availability reaching 760,000.

The Special Committee for Fair Environment Creation under KOFIC (hereinafter referred to as the Special Committee) issued a statement on the 2nd. They expressed strong regret over the irregular release of 'Despicable Me 4.'

The Special Committee pointed out, "This act essentially deprived 147 films on the 20th and 144 films on the 21st of screening opportunities and seats."

They further emphasized, "This undermined the fair order of the film screening market and shook the foundations of agreements and standard contracts established for the normal and fair functioning of the Korean film market."

They urged for measures to be taken. "We hope such cases that disrupt the fair competitive order of the film screening and distribution markets do not recur."

'Despicable Me 4' faced controversy even before the paid previews began. The Korean Film Producers Association (hereinafter referred to as KFPA) also demanded the cancellation of the paid preview screenings, but they proceeded as scheduled.

The problem is that there are no means to sanction this trickery. There are no agreed-upon rules within the film industry. Measures urgently need to be established.

Meanwhile, thanks to the paid previews, 'Despicable Me 4' surpassed 1 million viewers within three days.

<Photo='Despicable Me 4' Poster>