China's box office tops $2.36 billion as summer season starts

China's annual box-office revenue has surpassed 16 billion yuan (about $2.36 billion) as the summer movie season gets underway, with more than 60 films across a variety of genres set to hit cinemas in the coming months.

Pegasus 3, Dear You and Blades of the Guardians currently rank as the year's top three box-office hits. Dear You, which remains screening in theaters, has extended its run on the Chinese mainland through June 30. The film is scheduled for release in China's Hong Kong and Macao special administrative regions, Singapore, Malaysia and Brunei on June 18, with additional overseas releases expected to follow.

Among the summer releases, the Chinese historical film Crossing recounts the Chinese Red Army's four crossings of the Chishui River during the Long March, commemorating the upcoming 90th anniversary of the victory of the Long March. The British-French-American co-production Pressure focuses on the tense 72 hours before the D-Day landings during World War II. The American science-fiction film Disclosure Day, directed and co-produced by Steven Spielberg, imagines how humanity might respond to the revelation that it is not alone in the universe.

Animation remains a major highlight of the summer box-office lineup. The documentary Chinese Animation: A Century traces the development of Chinese animation from its early explorations to its modern achievements. The Three Kingdoms Part 1: The Battle for Luoyang revisits the conflicts among warlords at the end of the Eastern Han Dynasty, while Da Sheng Rises draws on the enduring legend of the Monkey King. New entries in popular international franchises, including Minions & Monsters and Toy Story 5, are also highly anticipated.

Beyond these titles, a variety of Chinese and international films across genres such as romance, comedy and horror will further enrich the summer movie slate and cater to diverse audience tastes.