China's yearly box office total hits 15b yuan

China's total box office earnings this year have reached 15 billion yuan ($2.22 billion), largely generated by films released during the week-long Spring Festival holiday ending on Feb 6.

Topping the yearly revenue chart was The Battle at Lake Changjin II with 4.06 billion yuan, according to data from film data platforms.

The Battle at Lake Changjin II is a sequel to the 2021 film The Battle at Lake Changjin, China's top-grossing title of all time that earned a whopping 5.77 billion yuan.

Set during the War to Resist US Aggression and Aid Korea (1950-53), The Battle at Lake Changjin tells the story of Chinese People's Volunteers fighting bravely in freezing weather as part of a vital campaign at Lake Changjin, also known as Chosin Reservoir.

Comedy Too Cool To Kill came in second with 2.62 billion yuan. Nice View, also a domestic feature, ranked third with 1.38 billion yuan, immediately followed by animated film Boonie Bears: Back to Earth that raked in 971 million yuan.

The top four earners were all released on Feb 1, the Spring Festival or Chinese New Year's Day.

It took 139 days for the yearly box office total to hit the 15-billion-yuan milestone, much slower than last year due to COVID-19.