The box office action over the weekend took place in China, where “Aquaman” collected $94 million in tickets, validating a risky plan by Warner Bros. to release the movie in the Middle Kingdom before anywhere else.
Chinese audiences have grown more selective about Hollywood movies, at times displaying a new preference for locally made movies like the extravagant “Operation Red Sea, ” directed by Dante Lam, known as the Michael Bay of Asia.
The upshot: “Aquaman, ” starring Jason Momoa as the DC Comics superhero and directed by James Wan, could have easily flopped in China, which would have left a stink on the movie before its global rollout. “Aquaman, ” which cost an estimated $350 million to make and market worldwide, will arrive in 40 more countries Friday. Audiences in North America will have the chance to see it starting Dec. 21.
Why didn’t Warner just release “Aquaman” this weekend in North America as well?
The two weekends after Thanksgiving in the United States are typically among the slowest moviegoing periods of the year, as holiday shopping and related festivities take priority. There were no new wide-release films over the weekend in North America, where the No.1 movie was once again “Ralph Breaks the Internet” (Disney), which collected about $16.1 million, for a three-week domestic total of $140.9 million, according to comScore.
Brooks Barnes
© 2018 THE NEW YORK TIMES
https://www.nytimes.com/2018/12/09/arts/aquaman-box-office-china.html
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