The Chinese animated film Ne Zha 2, a fantasy adventure inspired by Chinese mythology, has made history by becoming the highest-grossing animated movie of all time worldwide, according to local media reports.
On Tuesday, Ne Zha 2 surpassed the 2024 U.S. animation Inside Out 2 to set the global box office record.
Released on January 29, the film rapidly broke domestic records, becoming the highest-grossing film in China and the most successful movie in a single market, with total box office revenues exceeding 12.5 billion yuan ($1.72 billion) as of Thursday.
A sequel to the 2019 hit Ne Zha, the film draws from the 16th-century Chinese novel Journey to the West. It follows the mischievous Ne Zha, born with demonic powers, as he defies fate and challenges heavenly authority.
The film’s success has sparked national pride in China, with Foreign Ministry spokesman Guo Jiakun calling it a “new bridge for cultural exchanges between China and the world.”
At a Shanghai movie theater, a 20-year-old university student, watching the film for the second time, shared, “I was moved by Ne Zha cooperating with his friends to fight together and attracted by the 3D visuals,” adding that she plans to watch it again.
The film has already been screened in countries like the United States and Australia, with a planned release in Japan.
Director Yang Yu, known by his pseudonym “Jiaozi” (meaning “dumpling”), is a former pharmacy student turned filmmaker. He credits his passion for anime to childhood influences from Japan, including Dragon Ball and Saint Seiya: Knights of the Zodiac.
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