Chinese New Year Cinema Roundup

After Ne Zha 2’s extraordinary rise last year, it was inevitable that this Chinese New Year’s cinema takings would look a little drab. However, this is also one of the most influential periods for Chinese cinema. Brandon Blake, the entertainment lawyer with Blake & Wang P.A., offers a look under the hood of this year’s cinematic performance.

                                                                       Brandon Blake

A Successful Box Office?

It’s tempting indeed to note the decline in this year’s takings and leave it at that. However, the Chinese New Year brought home RMB 5.75B, or about $842.3M over the festivities. Admissions were 120 million people.  That’s 18% down on last year’s takings, which hit RMB 7M, or $965M.

Was this year likely to match Ne Zha 2? No. That was a remarkable performance from a film that can only be classified as a sleeper hit. But more worryingly, this is the lowest dip for the New Year period in 8 years.

 

More Screenings, Lesser Prices

                                   Blake & Wang Attorneys

Average daily screenings for the New Year period were up. Not by a small amount, either - think 15%. However, ticket price averages dropped to one of the lowest of recent years, especially in third- and fourth-tier cities. Yet, this also makes moviegoing easier for the wider public. 60% of the Spring Festival’s traction was in those same city tiers.

While Pegasus 3, the year’s top performer, was no Ne Zha 2, it took home a completely credible $424.8M share of the box office, and nearly $94M on the first day breakout. That’s enough to make it the biggest Chinese-language hit since Ne Zha 2.

Overall, it’s hard to characterize this year as a “poor performance” at all. It’s simply a normal next year after a phenomenal breakout hit. But there are some worrying overall trends that the Chinese box office may want to monitor more carefully through the year.