Chow’s ‘Mermaid’ nearing RM840 million at record pace

BEIJING: Hong Kong director Stephen Chow’s latest comedy Mermaid is about to reach the US$200-million (RM840-million) mark at a record pace as the box office in China reached a new peak.

Also doing healthy business over the Lunar New Year season were From Vegas to Macau 3 and The Monkey King 2.

On Feb 8, Mermaid had set a new one-day record with a haul of US$40.7 million (RM171 million).

Fusing Chow’s ribald brand of humour with a love story and an environmentalist message, Mermaid has won a warm reception from Chinese critics and mainstream moviegoers alike. The fantasy comedy focuses on a billionaire playboy (Deng Chao) who buys a dolphin preserve with an intention to illegally develop it.

A beautiful mermaid (firsttimer Jelly Lin) hatches a scheme to protect her aquatic brethren by seducing and assassinating the tycoon — but her plans become complicated after she falls in love with him.

In Hong Kong, Mermaid has made HK$20 million (RM11.3 million).

Although Chow does not appear in the movie, he provided the audio for the snoring of the

I really took part in the performance!

Stephen Chow, director

old mermaid.

Joked Chow: “I really took part in the performance!”

Even with such a mundane audio recording, Chow was able to demonstrate a full range of emotions.