Hong Kong crime thriller Line Walker, a big screen adaptation of a hit TV series, crept its way to the top of the Chinese box office during another downbeat late-summer weekend.
Line Walker opened to $8.9 million Thursday, before slipping slightly to $7.1 million Friday, as a wave of other local new releases joined the fray. It went on to win the weekend with a solid but unexceptional $27.1 million, taking its four-day total to $36 million, according to Beijing-based box office tracker Ent Group.
Starring Nick Cheung and Louis Koo, the film is an official China-Hong Kong co-production, made by Shaw Brothers Pictures, Media Asia, TVB and several mainland Chinese partners.
Coming in second, youth romance Love O2O cashed in on Qixi, or Chinese Valentine’s Day, which landed on Tuesday (Aug. 9). The movie proved the date-night picture of choice for many, earning $18.2 million from Friday to Sunday. Referring to the tech-world buzzword “online-to-offline” in its title, the film follows two young people, played by stars of the moment Angelababy and Jing Boran, who meet and fall in love through an online role-playing game.
Hong Kong martial arts flick Call of Heroes landed in third place with a weekend debut of $13.6 million. The film is set in 1914 following the collapse of the Qing dynasty, and tells the story of a group of villagers standing up to a cruel young warlord. Starring Sean Lau, Louis Koo (again) and Eddie Peng, it was produced and financed by Universe Entertainment, Bona Film Group and iQiyi Motion Pictures, among others.
Last weekend’s winner Time Raiders fell to fourth, taking $13.1 million from Friday to Sunday after opening to $71 million the weekend prior. Young fans had come out in force for the film’s stars, idols Lu Han and Jing Boran, but poor word-of-mouth about the film’s quality quickly caught up with it.
Hollywood holdover Secret Life of Pets added $6.6 million for a 13-day cume of $49 million in China.
Hong Kong rom-com I Love That Crazy Little Thing pitched itself to the Qiyi date crowd with lesser success, opening to $4.32 million.
Disney nature’s co-production with Shanghai Media Group, Born in China opened to just $2.3 million. An ode to the natural wonders and rare animals of the Middle Kingdom, the doc was directed by leading Chinese filmmaker Lu Chuan (City of Life and Death; the upcoming River Town). Disney plans to give the film a limited North American release next year.
Hollywood’s next releases in China will be Jason Bourne and Ice Age: Collision Course, both on Aug. 23.
