China's summer box office totalled 8.7 billion yuan, or approximately 22.94 trillion rupiah, through early August, driven by two dominant titles. According to ticket platform Maoyan data through early August as reported by Global Times on Monday (10/8), the summer season ran from June 1 through August 31.
Kung Fu Soccer topped the summer box office with 2.26 billion yuan, or about 5.96 trillion rupiah. The action comedy, directed in the style of Stephen Chow, outpaced the locally produced animated film All Wishes Come True!, which earned 1.44 billion yuan, or approximately 3.79 trillion rupiah, in second place.
Spider-Man: Brand New Day emerged as the leading imported film in China. The fourth Spider-Man film starring Tom Holland collected 196.6 million yuan during the August 7-9 weekend in its second week. Cumulatively since its July 29 release, the film has earned 1.27 billion yuan, or about 3.34 trillion rupiah, placing it in the top three summer releases, according to Variety.
Daily national box office receipts consistently exceeded 100 million yuan for 30 consecutive days, reflecting strong theatre attendance. The previous weekend alone generated 97.3 million dollars in box office revenue nationally, Variety reported.
Competition in China's cinema market was expected to intensify as August drew to a close. The comedy-drama Once Upon A Time in the Middle East, starring Shen Teng and directed by Wen Muye, entered the weekly top three during its preview showings ahead of its August 11 release. Christopher Nolan's epic film The Odyssey was set to begin screenings on August 19.
