China Box Office 2023 Soars To Pre-Pandemic Levels In Lunar New Year Holidays
Beijing, January 31 - The Chinese box office 2023, amid the covid-19 outbreak, has soared to the pre-pandemic levels during the Lunar New Year holidays, China's most lucrative moviegoing window of the year. ## According to Variety, the weeklong festive period (Jan. 21 - 27) of the Lunar New Year witnessed movie ticket sales worth RMB6.76 billion or $1.06 billion (current exchange rate), up 14 percent from the equivalent stretch in 2019, the last holiday prior to the pandemic. ## This year, China's box office also easily topped the 2022 Lunar New Year, which brought in $888.2 million. The box office 2023 in Mainland China will also easily top the total collection of RMB7.82 billion ($1.15 billion) in 2021, a year in which Chinese cinemas were operating normally. ## The best-performing film during Lunar New Year 2023 was Zhang Yimou's period action comedy "Full River Red", released on January 22. It grossed RMB3.16 billion, or $465 million while Frant Gwo's sci-fi sequel, "The Wandering Earth 2" (Jan. 22) grossed RMB2.57 billion, or $378 million during the same period. ## "Boonie Bears: The Guardian Code", a Chinese animation film franchise with a new installment released every Lunar New Year, earned RMB924 million, or $136 million, in its eight-day opening session. World War II spy thriller "Hidden Blade" earned RMB586 million, or $86.2 million, in its eight-day opening, while children's animated movie "Deep Sea" swam off with RMB451 million, or $66.3 million, for fifth place, as per Variety.## The abrupt exit from Beijing's restrictive "COVID zero" policy late last year came as a major relief for the Chinese people and the box office rebound is one such big example of it. ## Stay tuned...
