Disney/Pixar’s “Soul” has now outperformed “Wonder Woman 1984” in China by more than $10 million despite debuting a week later than the latter. By the end of its third weekend in local cinemas, “Soul” had grossed $36.1 million, according to data from the Maoyan platform — far more than the Warner Brothers title’s China earnings of $25.5 million, and more, even, than its North American cume of $32.6 million.
“Soul” was once again the highest performing foreign title between Friday and Sunday, coming in fourth with weekend sales of $6.4 million. Though its slow burn of continuous sales spurred on by strong word of mouth is expected to continue, Maoyan has dialed down its projected cume by about $5 million to under $49 million. This would knock “Soul” out of contention to become Pixar’s second-highest grossing film in the country, leaving 2018’s “The Incredibles 2” the holder of that title thanks to a $51.5 million cume.
While “Wonder Woman 1984” led the North American box office for the third straight weekend with a three-day tally of $3 million, it grossed a mere $102,000 in China.
Instead, local films topped the roster. Drama “A Little Red Flower” continues to lead the pack, grossing $21.9 million in a week with no notable new releases. The film stars teen idol Jackson Yee of TFboys and “Better Days” fame, and is directed by Han Yan, who gained visibility with the 2018 actioner “Animal World.”
The Andy Lau-starring “Shock Wave 2” came in second, with sales of $11.5 million. In third was the local comedy “Warm Hug,” written and directed by Chang Yuan (“Hello Mr. Billionaire”) which earned $10.7 million.
In fifth was the children’s animation “The Octonauts: The Ring of Fire,” which is backed by Wanda Pictures and Silvergate Media, the producer of the “Peter Rabbit” animated series and the children’s series “Octonauts” it is based on. Silvergate worked with Chinese state broadcaster CCTV to co-produce season five of that show, which targeted preschool-aged children. It has offices in both London and New York, and plans a second feature film collaboration with Wanda based on the IP titled “The Underwater Caves of Sac Atun.”