Hollywood blockbusters in tough competition in Chinese theaters

World
Europe

China's box office grossed a record 2.8 billion yuan (425 million US dollars) during the National Day holiday and was dominated by domestic releases. But upcoming Hollywood blockbusters are aiming for the hearts of Chinese moviegoers, and their pockets, as they aim to capitalize on the world's second-largest film market.

Six movies are hitting the screens in China starting next week with their respective release dates separated by only a week's time.

First up is "Kingsman 2: The Golden Circle" out on October 20.

The string of successive big budget releases means a visual feast for Chinese spectators, but for their producers, it's a cutthroat competition.

The under-promoted sci-fi film "Geostorm" is already the first casualty, having been forced to push back its release date to October 27 so it doesn't come head-to-head with Matthew Vaughn's action film.

However the American disaster film is now finding itself up against "Blade Runner 2049", whose debut has been also moved to October 27 from its original release on November 10.

A poster for 'Kingsman: The Golden Circle.' /Xinhua Photo

"Blade Runner 2049" is also a sci-fi thriller where human-like robots, called Replicants, are hunted by police officers, "blade runners", in a dystopian Los Angeles.

However, the movie starring Ryan Gosling and Harrison Ford has not been a commercial success, raking in only 32.7 million dollars at its US debut, well below the 50-million-dollar projection by Warner Bros.

The movie's Chinese opening is seen as an essential move to lift the 155-million-dollar project's performance in overseas markets.

A poster for 'Blade Runner 2049.' /Photo via china.org.cn

Other release dates are as follows:

"Thor: Ragnarok," the third installment of the "Thor" franchise, is slated for November 3 – in line with North America but a week later than the rest of the world.

"Murder on the Orient Express" follows up on November 10.

And wrapping up the battle will be Warner Bros/DC's "Justice League" that opens on November 17 and features Superman, Wonder Woman, The Flash, Batman, Aquaman, and Cyborg all at once.

In a bid to attract Chinese audiences, the leading actors of the film even recorded greetings for the Mid-Autumn Festival which fell on October 4 this year.