The Chinese movie Successor is killing it at the box office! In its opening weekend it made around $89 million, which is crazy. It’s about a poor family trying to climb up the social ladder and get their super smart son into a good school. I guess that hits home for a lot of people in China.
Successor didn’t just come out of nowhere, either. The filmmakers released it on a Tuesday instead of the usual Friday. That let more people see it over a few extra days. By the weekend it was a huge hit.
Hollywood films aren’t doing as well lately though. The new Despicable Me made around $17 million, which is a lot less than the last one. And that Twisters movie that came out at the same time in both China and America? It only made like $1.5 million in China, even though it made $80 million in the US. I guess Chinese audiences don’t always connect with American movies lately.
It was cool to see that a re-release of the Japanese anime Your Name still did pretty well too. I think it shows people in China are open to other Asian movies, not just their own.
Overall China’s box office is still growing, even if it’s a bit behind last year. Successor proves audiences there love movies that feel real to their lives. The filmmakers are smart to release it in other countries now, hoping it connects globally too. Hollywood will need to pay attention to what China wants if they want to compete over there in the future.