Summary
Ne Zha 2is already nearing the end of the line at the box office. But slow and steady wins box office battles and the historic Chinese might only just overthrow another Hollywood heavyweight off the global charts.
The “Ne Zha” folklore — about an unruly demon boy who fights dragons — has always been insanely popular with the Chinese audience The firstanimationgrossed $742 million exclusively in the Chinese market but the sequel,Ne Zha 2,shocked the global film community in the first quarter of the year by grossing an unprecedented $2 billion-plus and accumulating a string of records along the way. It’s thehighest-grossing animated movie of all time, beatingInside Out 2’s record in just three weeks; the highest-grossing movie in a single market (China), after bestingStar Wars: The Force Awakens’ $936 million domestic gross; and the first and only non-Hollywood movie to earn $1 billion or $2 billion at the box office.
According toVariety,Ne Zha2’s eleventh weekend haul in Chinese theaters ranked third with $3.3 million bringing its domestic total to $2.11 billion. The leaders in the Chinese market didn’t earn much more. Local ensemble dramaWe Girlsfinished the weekend with $4.6 million and Warner Bros. and Legendary’sA Minecraft Moviegrabbed just $200,000 less ($4.4 million).As of this writing,Ne Zha 2’s global total stands at $2.15 billion, which means the Cococartoon release is still lonely at the top of 2025’s box office charts — the next in line isA Minecraft Moviewith $550 million — and just $73 million away from unseatingJames Cameron’sAvatar: The Way of Wateras the third highest-grossing film of all time.
Ne Zha 2Would Need Incredible Legs or A Re-release to SurpassAvatar: The Way of Water
It Just Needs An Additional $73 Million
There was a time whenNe Zha 2had a shot at going straight for the head:Avengers: EndgameandAvatar’s(2009) record. But with the animation now grossing less than $6 million weekly and the Chinese market’s weekly performance dropping from $52 million to $20 million, that chance is long gone. The American audience won’t be of much aid as well. Although it was granted a very limited showing in the U.S., with just 660 theatres, the film grossed $10 million in 6 days, which is a record for Chinese releases and the 18th highest for a non-English animation in the market. Currently, it has all but come to a halt.
All this is to say:Avatar: The Way of Water’s $2.320 billionis a long reach forNe Zha 2,it would need miraculous legs to do that within its current release window. However, the keyword should be “for now.” What’s to stop Cococartoon from pursuing a re-release some months down the line, patching a bunch of added deleted scenes in it with the sole aim of oustingAvatar: The Way of Water? It’s a technique used byAvengers: EndgameandAvataras one sought to best the other. The difference this time, though, is thatNe Zha 2has the backing of the 1.3 billion Chinese audience who will certainly answer the call if it means making history once more.
