US media claims Hollywood action films are more attractive to China audiences than films that won the championship in North America

US media said that Hollywood blockbusters such as "Warcraft" and "Resident Evil: The Final Chapter" that suffered box office failures in the United States are among the best-selling films in China, the world's second-largest box office market.

Original title US media: Hollywood action films are more attractive to China audiences than North American box office champions

US media said that Hollywood blockbusters such as "Warcraft" and "Resident Evil: The Final Chapter" that have suffered box office failures in the United States are among the best-selling films in China, the world's second-largest box office market.

According to a report by the US Quartz Financial website on March 28, Zeng Maojun, president of Wanda Theater, said at the film expo this week that for 1.3 billion China people, Hollywood action films are more attractive than the illusory legends that lead the North American box office.

According to the report, this explains why "Resident Evil: The Final Chapter" and "Extreme Agents 3: The Ultimate Return", which suffered box office fiasco in the United States, successfully defeated "Star Wars: The Force Awakens" and "Star Wars: Rogue One" and "Beauty and the Beast". The latter three films were the North American box office champions in 2015, 2016 and 2017 respectively. (These films were released later in China than in the United States, except for "Beauty and the Beast.")

According to the US Quartz Financial website, China alone accounted for half of the US$433 million total global box office of "Warcraft". According to U.S. Box Office Network, the film's domestic box office was only about US$47 million, which is about 30% of the film's approximately US$160 million cost.

According to the report, Zeng Maojun said that China audiences are also very resistant to Hollywood cartoons. Therefore,"Finding Nemo 2: Where Is Dolly Going" and "The Pet Secret" have not been as successful in China as they have in the United States. However, some Hollywood films with global appeal such as "Zootopia" have successfully tapped China's love for such themes.

The report also said that after nearly a decade of impressive growth, China's box office was once expected to surpass North America. But it hit a wall last year. Box office revenue in China last year was 45.7 billion yuan (US$6.6 billion), up less than 4%, compared with a 48% increase the previous year. Zeng Maojun predicts that box office in China will now grow by 15% to 20% annually.

Editor: Nancy