Warner Bros.’ Furiosa: A Mad Max Saga and A24’s Civil War both got off to a slow start at China’s box office over the country’s Dragon Boat Festival holiday weekend as a batch of local releases dominated ticket sales. George Miller’s Furiosa, the first movie of the Mad Max saga to be released theatrically in China, opened in sixth place with $3.7 million, while Alex Garland’s Civil War debuted to just $2.3 million, according to data from consultancy Artisan Gateway.
Civil War, which was made for about $50 million, was already an international hit with $69 million in total ticket revenue in North America and $114 million worldwide. But George Miller’s Furiosa certainly could have used a bigger boost, as its $144 million at the global box offices is still lagging behind its hefty $168 million production budget. Chinese ticketing app Maoyan forecasts Furiosa to finish its run with about $7.5 million and Civil War to top out at about $3.7 million.
Sony’s The Garfield Movie, which opened in second place a week ago, slipped to fourth place with $5.4 million in its second frame. The movie has earned $15.2 million after nine days on Chinese screens.
Chinese comedy Be My Friend, based on a TV show of the same name and directed by He Nian, won the weekend with $8.1 million. Crime comedy Walk the Line, from filmmaker Wubai, landed in second place with $7.8 million, while Crisis Negotiators, a Hong Kong remake of F. Gary Gray’s The Negotiator, came in third with $5.8 million.
As of Monday, total ticket revenue in China year-to-date was $3.15 billion, down 2.2 percent from the same period in 2023. Upcoming U.S. studio releases in China include Pixar’s Inside Out 2 on June 21 and Bad Boys 4 on June 22.
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