Chinese animated film Ne Zha 2 slays global box office records

However, Ne Zha 2 has been disproportionately successful locally.

In 2024, there were 38 movies made in China or with Chinese funding released in Australia. Apart from Kung Fu Panda 4, which grossed $24.81 million, and Ferrari (partially financed with Chinese money), which took $3.86 million, none of them topped the $1 million mark. In all, those other 26 Chinese-language films took about $5.6 million.

The year before, 38 films classified as Chinese were released in Australia. The top two – Meg 2: The Trench and Guy Ritchie’s Operation Fortune: Ruse de Guerre – were Hollywood productions with Chinese finance. The remaining 26 grossed about $8.9 million combined.

Indian cinema is a greater presence in Australia, with more than 250 titles released last year, for a total box office of about $40 million (the top 10 films accounted for almost half that haul).

Reports suggest the success of Ne Zha 2 in China has been spurred by patriotism, with audiences being urged to see the film in order to fend off the latest Marvel movie, Captain America: Brave New World, and criticism of it decried as “unpatriotic”.

Highest-grossing films worldwide ($US)

Avatar $2,923,706,026 (2009)
Avengers: Endgame $2,797,501,328 (2019)
Avatar: The Way of Water $2,320,250,281 (2022)
Titanic $2,257,844,554 (1997)
Star Wars: The Force Awakens $2,068,223,624 (2015)
Avengers: Infinity War $2,048,359,754 (2018)
Spider-Man: No Way Home $1,922,598,800 (2021)
Ne Zha 2 $1,889,620,155 (2025)
Inside Out 2 $1,698,863,816 (2024)
Jurassic World $1,671,537,444 (2015)