China's yearly box office tops 43b yuan, leading global markets

BEIJING -- China's 2021 box office revenue totaled 43 billion yuan (about $6.71 billion) as of Saturday, according to box office tracker Maoyan.

Its growth was slower than in pre-pandemic 2019, but the yearly total revenue still led the global box office markets.

Eight of this year's top 10 earners at China's box office are domestic productions.

Topping the yearly chart is the patriotic Chinese blockbuster The Battle at Lake Changjin which has earned more than 5.62 billion yuan since Sept 30. It is the highest-grossing title so far this year, both in China and globally.

Jointly directed by Chen Kaige, Hark Tsui and Dante Lam, The Battle at Lake Changjin is set during the War to Resist US Aggression and Aid Korea (1950-1953) and tells the story of Chinese People's Volunteers (CPV) soldiers fighting bravely in freezing temperatures in a key campaign at Lake Changjin, or Chosin Reservoir.

The story of young warriors willing to risk it all to defend their motherland against the world's best-equipped army, despite a lack of food and warm clothing amid the bitter cold, has moved many moviegoers to tears.

The Battle at Lake Changjin is set for release in the United States and Canada on Nov 19, and in Australia on Dec 2, according to an announcement by CMC Pictures, a distributor, via social media.

Domestic comedies Hi, Mom and Detective Chinatown 3, both released during the Chinese New Year holiday, rank second and third on the yearly box office chart with 5.41 billion yuan and 4.52 billion yuan, respectively.

The only two foreign films in the top 10 are the US productions F9: The Fast Saga and Godzilla vs. Kong, respectively ranking fifth and eighth, with 1.39 billion yuan and 1.23 billion yuan, respectively.