China Box Office: Animated Film ‘Green Snake’ Worms Its Way to No. 1

Rebecca Davis editorChinese censors have approved the next feature from Tibetan director Pema Tseden, a Venice International Film Festival regular and one of the most influential filmmakers working in the Tibetan language.The film’s Chinese name translates to “Stranger.” It is an adaptation of a short story he wrote of the same name, which he has publicly said as far back as 2013 that he hoped one day to adapt into a film.Authorities have approved the script Tseden wrote for the project,

BBC. Due to take effect on Oct.

Rebecca Davis editorThe list of major Hollywood tentpoles that have released in the U.S. in the past month but not yet fixed a China release date is growing ever longer — an issue of significant concern to industry players on both sides of the Pacific.“Black Widow,” “Space Jam: A New Legacy,” “Jungle Cruise” and now “The Suicide Squad” have all rolled out Stateside but given no formal indication of when and whether they will debut in the world’s largest film market.

Organizers of the Beijing International Film Festival have postponed the event due to increasing Covid cases in China.

Rebecca Davis editorChinese director Lu Chuan will be the lead director of the opening ceremony for the upcoming 2022 Asian Games in Hangzhou city, an international sports spectacle taking place months after the Beijing Winter Olympics.Held every four years, the games will occur from Sept. 10 to 25 in the verdant capital of Zhejiang province, coinciding with the Mid-Autumn Festival holiday.

Patrick Frater Asia Bureau ChiefHighly-anticipated mainland Chinese film “The Battle at Lake Changjin,” which was due to have been released later this month has been postponed to an unspecified date. The move, announced late on Thursday, was caused by a recent resurgence in COVID-19 cases in China.The film is a Korean War epic that is co-directed by Chen Kaige, Hark Tsui and Dante Lam and should have released on Aug.

Rebecca Davis editorDistributor Trinity CineAsia has acquired Donnie Yen-starring action film “Raging Fire” from Emperor Motion Pictures for the U.K. and Ireland.The film debuted at the top of the box office last weekend in China, where it grossed $37.2 million in the three-day period, and led sales since, grossing $56.8 million in its opening week.It’s the last film from the legendary Hong Kong writer, director and producer Benny Chan, who died last summer.

Rebecca Davis editorChinese director Chen Kaige’s U.S.-born son Arthur Chen Feiyu has swapped his American citizenship out for a Chinese one, a change widely viewed locally as a savvy move to boost his burgeoning career in the mainland.The move comes as Chinese public opinion about celebrities has hinged upon questions of nationality.

Rebecca Davis editorDonnie Yen-starring action thriller “Raging Fire” roared to the top this weekend in China with a $37.2 million opening, according to data from consultancy Artisan Gateway, but its sales were far from enough to revive China’s slumping ticket sales.Yen was last seen on Chinese screens last year in Disney’s “Mulan,” which performed worse than expected.

Rebecca Davis editorThe first import to break through China’s nearly two-month political moratorium on foreign films apparently won’t be “Black Widow” or “Space Jam: A New Legacy.” Instead, Beijing is opening its doors to an unlikely contender for August: a little-known British Christmas film about a cat.“A Christmas Gift From Bob” — a seasonal, feel-good sequel to the uplifting 2016 biographical drama “A Street Cat Named Bob” — will hit Chinese screens on Aug. 6.

Rebecca Davis editorTop Chinese social media platform Weibo has banned the official account of the German consulate in Guangzhou for “violating community standards” after it posted information about a LGBTQ film festival jointly hosted with 16 other foreign governments.The ban, which has now been in effect for more than two full days, was instated after nationalist Weibo users flooded the platform’s censors with reports that the German consulate’s message was politically problematic.All of the

Refresh for latest…: As with domestic, a pair of new studio offerings opened at the international box office this weekend. However, the biggest grosses came from local pics in China where upcoming release dates for Hollywood continue to be a frustrating question mark.

Dr. Anthony Fauci, under attack for his role in funding research at a laboratory many suspect of being the cause of the worldwide coronavirus pandemic, defended his actions Sunday on CNN’s State of the Union talk show.

Rebecca Rubin Film and Media Reporter“Dear Evan Hansen,” a movie version of the hit Broadway show, will open the 2021 edition of the Toronto International Film Festival.In addition, the festival’s organizers announced that Chinese director Zhang Yimou’s latest feature “One Second” will close the festival. Described as a “love letter to cinema,” the film stars Wei Fan and Xiaochuan Li and follows a man who escapes a labour camp for a glimpse of his daughter.

UPDATE: Disney/Marvel’s Black Widow narrowly led the international box office for Hollywood films this weekend, grossing an additional $29.9M from 48 material markets. That’s a 55% drop from opening, which most agree is decent even if there’s no getting around the fact that these are not Marvel-ous numbers. The overseas total is now even with domestic at $132M for $264M global. Contrary to last weekend, Disney did not break out streaming figures this time around.

Rebecca Davis editor“Chinese Doctors” gave a shot in the arm to a sluggish weekend at the Chinese box office, coming in first with sales of $44.4 million, according to Maoyan data.The patriotic tear-jerked had little competition: only other patriotic films, children’s animations and youth-centric programming are currently in theaters.The Wuhan-set pandemic film from Bona Film is the most commercial of a slew of blockbusters intended to celebrate the 100th anniversary of the Communist Party, and

HBO Max is exploring multiple Game of Thrones animated spinoffs, sources confirm to Deadline.

iOS - Android The three-minute-long animation will also be subtitled in Simplified Chinese and English.It will feature a tiger cub character reflecting the fact that 2022 is the Year of the Tiger in the Chinese Zodiac.Ruben said: “I feel very excited and so proud to be selected for this commission.