While a host of American moviesattracted attention this past weekfollowing the 97th Academy Awards, the Chinese mega-hitNe Zha 2continued its record-breaking theatrical run. The film debuted during the lucrative Chinese New Year period, where it delivered the biggest opening weekend haul in history for an animated film.Ne Zha 2becameonly the seventh film ever to hit the $2 billion mark in global box office revenue, with the vast majority of that total coming from the Middle Kingdom, where it’s the highest-grossing hit of all time by a margin of over $1 billion.
This weekend, after playing in theaters for over a month,Ne Zha 2passedAvengers: Infinity War’s $2.04 billion lifetime global haul to becomethe sixth-biggest hit in global box office history. It will also passStar Wars: The Force Awakens’ $2.05 billion lifetime haul before the end of its run to become one of the five biggest hits ever released. When the dust settles,Ne Zha 2will find itself in elite company —James Cameron’sTitanic,Avatar: The Way of Water, andAvatar, and Marvel’sAvengers: Endgame.Avatarremains the highest-grossing film of all time, with nearly $3 billion in global box office revenue.
Over the course of its landmark run,Ne Zha 2emerged as the biggest hit of 2025, andthe biggest animated movie of all time. To achieve this feat, it overtookInside Out 2’s $1.7 billion haul. The Pixar hit had claimed the title only a few months ago.Ne Zha 2cost less than half of that film — it wasproduced on a reported budget of $80 million, whileInside Out 2cost a reported $200 million to produce. In the post-pandemic era, most studios have been restricting budgets for animated movies to under $100 million. Blockbusters such asDespicable Me 4,Minions, andThe Super Mario Bros. Movieall came in under this figure.
‘Ne Zha 2’ Holds a 99% Audience Score on Rotten Tomatoes
Another shift has been observed in the theatrical landscape recently; the Chinese market, which relied heavily on American movies not too long ago, has become mostly self-sustaining in recent years. While there have been a handful of Hollywood hits that have managed to break through in China —Venom: The Last DanceandJurassic World Dominioncome to mind — most American movies appear to have limited appeal in China these days. This has opened the doors for films such as Ne Zha 2 to shine. The movie was beloved by audiences, and currently holds a “certified hot” 99% audience score on the aggregator websiteRotten Tomatoes. Stay tuned to Collider for more updates.
