Chinese animated film 'All Wishes Come True' heads overseas

A Chinese animated film inspired by the legend of the Eight Immortals is going global this summer.

All Wishes Come True will arrive in cinemas in Australia, New Zealand and Papua New Guinea on August 13. It will then open in the United States, Canada, the United Kingdom, Ireland and the Netherlands the following day. More release dates, including those for Singapore and Malaysia, will be announced later.

Released on July 18 in Chinese mainland cinemas, All Wishes Come True has become a summer box-office hit. The film had grossed about 370 million yuan (about $54 million) by the morning of July 22, according to ticketing platform Maoyan.

Rather than retelling the well-known legend of the Eight Immortals crossing the sea, All Wishes Come True imagines what happened before they became legendary figures. The story follows eight ordinary people who meet by chance and embark on an unexpected journey. Through a series of challenges, they gradually discover their strengths and eventually become the Eight Immortals known to generations of Chinese people.

The film mixes comedy, adventure and traditional Chinese visual elements and offers a new interpretation of a story that has been told for generations.