China Beats North America Box Office in Q1 Again
In the first quarter of 2019, China box office totaled RMB 18.6 billion, down by 8% compared to the same period last year. Chinese new year holiday was undoubtedly the most lucrative period in Q1 with The Wandering Earth totaling RMB 4.6 billion. Ticket sales of domestic films account for 66.31% of the total ticket earnings, which is a 7.95% drop year-over-year. In Q1, box office in North America was also disappointing with an even worse 16% decrease compared to last year. This makes China box office bigger than North America for the second time. Read more on entgroup.cn
‘Game of Thrones’-based Video Game Gets Approval from Chinese Regulator
On April 2, China’s State Administration of Press, Publication, Radio, Film and Television (SAPPRFT) published an announcement on its official website with a list of 30 approved foreign video games. This is the first batch of imported online games that are approved since the Chinese regulator re-opened game license application in December, 2018. One highlight on the list is Game of Thrones: Winter is Coming. Based on HBO’s hit TV show of the same name, The Game of Thrones game is developed by Youzu Interactive and distributed ed by Tencent. Read more on youxiputao
‘Pokémon: Detective Pikachu’ Set for China Release
The 2019 upcoming film Pokémon: Detective Pikachu has been scheduled for release in China day-and-date with North America on May 10. Set in a world where people collect Pokémon to do battle the film tells the story of a boy who works with a Pikachu to find the truth. Pokémon: Detective Pikachu is directed by Rob Letterman, who is also the director of Gulliver’s Travels and Goosebumps. The film stars Ryan Renold as the voice of Pikachu. The film also features Justice Smith, Ken Watanabe, and Bill Nighy. Read more on Mtime
