The Chinese animated phenomenon Ne Zha 2 has achieved milestone after milestone since its release about two months ago starting in China. Now, the movie is starting to be rolled out to other countries and is achieving yet a few more milestones. As of writing, the following are the records it has already set:
- Highest-Grossing Animated Film
- Highest-Grossing Non-English Language Film
- First Animated Film to $2 Billion
- First to $1 Billion in a Single Market
- Top 5 Highest Grossing Globally
- Highest-Grossing Chinese Film
- Fastest Animated Film to $1 Billion
According to our sources closely monitoring the developments in the Chinese film market, the movie has now reached about $2.13B this weekend after 9 consecutive weeks at number 1 in the Middle Kingdom. This puts the movie closer to Titanic with about $2.26B. Another source reports it has also grossed an estimated amount of $50M overseas which is a rare occurence for a Chinese film. For reference, the first film, Ne Zha grossed $7.5M during its entire run in 2019. There are a few more other countries lined up for release with India getting a reported dub release on April 24th and Japan which gets it earlier on April 4th.
The film about a demon boy raised by humans and strives to cultivate himself and protect the people around him from demons and gods. It has broken multiple box office records including the highest grossing Chinese film of all time, the highest grossing animated film of all time beating Inside Out 2, and placing within the top 5 highest grossing films of all time, beating the likes of Spider-man No Way Home, Avengers Infinity War, and Star Wars the Force Awakens.
The film is inspired by Chinese mythology with stories dating back to the 16th century under the title "Investiture of the Gods." He is a protection deity who is both heroic and rebellious in nature. For those familiar with Sun Wukong and the story of Journey to the West, Ne Zha was one of the warriors who faced him when he wrecked havoc in heaven.
With a reported $80M budget, the movie features breathtaking animation that took about 4,000 animators to make in 5 years with about 2,000 visual effects shots. The third act alone features about a reported 200 million individually animated characters.
Characters include Ne Zha, reincarnation of the demon orb, born to human parents Li Jing and Lady Yin in a fictional setting called Chentang Pass. He is guided by his master Taiyi Zhenren and along the way meets Ao Bing, a reincarnation of the spirit pearl and third son of Ao Guang, the Dragon King of the East Sea. Ao Bing, on the other hand, is trained by Taiyi's martial arts brother, Shen Gongbao. Newcomers in the movie are Wuliang, an immortal leading the Chan sect, Deero and Crana, lieutenants of Wuliang in exorcising the demons in the human world, Shen Xiaobao, Shen Gongbao's younger brother, Shen Zhengdao, their father.
Have you seen the movie yet? Let us know what you think and discuss in the comments.