LOS ANGELES, Feb. 23 (Xinhua) -- Chinese animated blockbuster "Ne Zha 2" remained the top five at the North American box office on its second weekend, taking in 3.06 million U.S. dollars for a North American cume of 14.85 million dollars, data from measurement firm Comscore showed on Sunday.
The tally made the film the highest-grossing Chinese-language film in North America since 2006.
Data from online platforms show that 2000's "Crouching Tiger, Hidden Dragon," directed by Ang Lee, is still the highest-grossing Chinese-language film in North America, with over 128 million dollars, followed by 2002's "Hero," directed by Zhang Yimou, which generated 53.7 million U.S. dollars in North America. However, since 2006's "Fearless," starring Jet Li, which earned 24.6 million in North America, no Chinese-language film has been able to break through the 10 million-mark in North America.
"Ne Zha 2" is a sequel to the 2019 animated box office hit "Ne Zha." Both films were inspired by China's 16th-century classic novel "The Investiture of the Gods."
The film is being released by CMC Pictures in Mandarin with English subtitles in over 940 selected theaters in North American cities including Los Angeles, San Francisco, Houston, Chicago, New York, Boston, Atlanta, Toronto, Vancouver and a few other cities with a large overseas Chinese population, according to the company.
As the film continues its record-breaking run, it has grossed an astounding 13.5 billion yuan (1.86 billion U.S. dollars) through Sunday, according to data from ticketing platform Maoyan. "Ne Zha 2" has dethroned Disney's 2024 picture "Inside Out 2" to become the highest-grossing animated movie of all time globally. ■
