'Ne Zha 2' shatters records to become global top 10 box-office hit

According to data from online movie platforms, the Chinese animated blockbuster "Ne Zha 2" has amassed a total box office of 12.052 billion yuan (around $1.663 billion), including pre-sales and overseas earnings, as of 2:41 p.m. Beijing Time on February 17. This achievement surpasses the $1.662 billion record set by "The Lion King" (2019), securing "Ne Zha 2" a place among the top 10 highest-grossing films worldwide. It now ranks as the second highest-grossing animated film of all time globally, trailing only "Inside Out 2."

In China, "Ne Zha 2" has dominated the market with an overwhelming 59.4 percent share of the 2025 box office, which surpassed 20 billion yuan (around $2.76 billion) as of 9:14 p.m. Beijing Time on February 16, setting a new record for the fastest annual box office to reach this milestone in Chinese film history.

The film's success is also extending overseas. Following its official premiere in North America on February 14, "Ne Zha 2" broke into the top five of the North American weekend box office chart, according to Comscore, a U.S.-based global media measurement and analytics company. The film earned an estimated $7.21 million over the weekend, setting a new record for the highest opening weekend box office for a Chinese domestic film in North America in recent years.

Comscore data further reveals that "Ne Zha 2" has topped the global weekend box office for three consecutive weeks.

"Ne Zha 2" is the first film to exceed $1 billion in a single market and the first non-Hollywood film to surpass $1 billion in global box-office earnings.