Local crime drama “Last Suspect” returned to the top of the box office in mainland China last weekend, while “The Hunger Games: The Ballad of Songbirds and Snakes” opened quietly in third place.
Last Suspect”, which was narrowly beaten by “The Marvels” last week, climbed one place, while “The Marvels” fell out of the top five in China. In its third weekend of release, “Last Suspect” took in $10.1 million (RMB76 million), according to data from box office tracker Artisan Gateway. After 17 days in release, it has earned a total of $68.1 million.
Chinese family drama “Be My Family” earned $4.8 million in its second weekend and took second place with a cumulative of $15.4 million after ten days in release.
“The Hunger Games: The Ballad of Songbirds and Snakes” earned $4.6 million (RMB33.5 million). Imax reported that $700,000 of the total came from its screens.
The weekend total is well below previous entries in the franchise, but largely in line with Hollywood’s struggles in China in the post-pandemic era. By comparison, the two previous Hunger Games: Mockingjay’ films were both released in China in 2015 (the first was delayed by regulators), with the second earning $15.8m on its opening weekend and laying claim to being the second biggest territory for the Lionsgate title.
Back in the present, previews of the Chinese title “Beyond the Clouds” were enough to put it in fourth place with $2.2 million. It is officially released on Friday.
Vintage Studio Ghibli animation “Porco Rosso” opened on Friday and took $1.7 million in its opening weekend. The film was produced in 1992 and had its China premiere at the 2021 edition of the Beijing International Film Festival.
Other data providers show “The Marvels” in sixth place over the weekend with a cumulative cume of $15.8 million. The Chinese box office on the cusp of a $7 billion total for the year. At $6.95 billion, the current total is 78% ahead of a troubled 2022, but 14% below the comparable point in 2019 before COVID.
