The Host (괴물, Goemul - "Monster") is a 2006 South Korean monster film, which also contains elements of comedy and drama films. The film was directed by Bong Joon-ho, who also co-wrote the screenplay, along with Baek Chul-hyun. Starring in the film as members of an unremarkable family thrust into the middle of extraordinary events were Song Kang-ho, Byeon Hee-bong, Park Hae-il, Bae Doona and Ko Ah-seong. The film has been accused of being anti-American, due to the portrayal of Americans in the film, and was lauded for this content in North Korea, a country where anti-American sentiment is high.

Following the success of the director's previous work, Memories of Murder, The Host was heavily anticipated and hyped. It was released on a record number of screens in its home country on July 27, 2006 and broke box-office records throughout its domestic run. By the end of its run on November 8th, the film had been seen over 13 million times, making it the highest grossing South Korean film of all time, beating the previous leader The King and the Clown, which had attracted 12.3 million people.