February 10 not only marked the first day of the Spring Festival holiday, but also kicked off an intense competition for the festival’s box-office champion.
China’s box-office revenue surpassed 4 billion yuan (around US$556 million), led by the domestic comedy “YOLO,” which garnered over a third of the total earnings in the four days since its release on Feb. 10.
<img src='https://news.cgtn.com/news/2024-02-13/Weight-loss-actress-director-s-new-film-tops-China-s-box-office-chart-1r9Qb0AUlTq/img/2d43641c236246ffb747bb6b96978207/2d43641c236246ffb747bb6b96978207.jpeg' alt='Actress-director Jia Ling appears in the movie poster for "YOLO," which was released on Feb. 10, 2024. /Photo provided to CGTN'
“YOLO,” which stands for “You Only Live Once,” has a plot that describes the dramatic physical transformation of Jia Ling, China’s top grossing female director, who plays the protagonist in her directorial work. The actress-director reportedly lost 50 kilograms in her six-month portrayal of the boxer.
The film had generated around 1.4 billion yuan (US$194 million) as of Tuesday morning, according to data from Maoyan, a leading movie ticketing and box office tracking platform.
<img src='https://news.cgtn.com/news/2024-02-13/Weight-loss-actress-director-s-new-film-tops-China-s-box-office-chart-1r9Qb0AUlTq/img/78186c055ef249fa8f9eca232631f3e2/78186c055ef249fa8f9eca232631f3e2.jpeg' alt='A film poster for "Pegasus 2," which began hitting big screens on Feb. 10, 2024. /Photo: CMG'
The film “Pegasus 2” has now moved to the second spot on the box-office chart after “YOLO,” notching up 1.2 billion yuan (US$167 million). It was followed by another newcomer “Boonie Bears: Time Twist,” the latest installment of a well-known Chinese animated movie series, which banked 760 million yuan (US$105 million) in revenue.
One of the most highly anticipated films of the Spring Festival holiday, veteran director Zhang Yimou’s “Article 20,” ranked fourth at the box office, earning 572 million yuan (approximately US$80 million).
