‘Crazy Rich Asians’ finally gets release date in China
HONG KONG: BritishMalaysian actor Henry Golding is apparently set for a promotional tour of China.
After scoring more than US$ 220 million ( RM924 million) worldwide, the season’s hit romantic comedy Crazy Rich Asians has finally scored a release in China.
It is slated to begin screening throughout China on Nov 30.
Doubts over a release in the world’s second-biggest film market had dogged the Warner Bros. film, with observers wondering whether its depiction of ostentatious wealth among the Chinese elite in Singapore would get the approval of China’s film regulators.
But film authorities have just announced that Crazy Rich Asians have been given the goahead.
The release date is some three and a half months after the movie’s Aug 15 cinematic outing in North America, and more than two months after its release in some East Asian territories. It released in Singapore, where much of the film is set, on Aug 22, in Hong Kong on Aug 23, and in Taiwan on Aug 24.
With the Chinese box office sagging in recent weeks, it is very possible that regulators calculated that the cinematic sector needs some hits to keep up the momentum of annual box office growth. The film scored US$ 35 million ( RM147 million) in its opening five days on release in North America and went on to score US$ 171 million.
In China, the film is to be treated as a revenue- sharing import, subject to quota and censorship restrictions. The release is to be handled by stateowned distributors China Film
Doubts over a release in the world’s second-biggest film market had dogged the Warner Bros. film, with observers wondering whether its depiction of ostentatious wealth among the Chinese elite in Singapore would get the approval of China’s film regulators.
Group and Huaxia Distribution.
Possible sticking points in the approval process of Crazy Rich Asians included careful attention paid to the adaptation from Kevin Kwan’s 2013 novel. In the original book, the heroine’s dark secret is a father who is lingering in a mainland Chinese jail.
In North America, the film was hailed as a breakthrough for a Hollywood picture made with an all-Asian cast. The film stars Constance Wu, Henry Golding, Tan Sri Michelle Yeoh, Awkwafina, Lisa Lu and Ken Jeong. Crazy Rich Asians was directed by Jon M. Chu.
In East Asia, driven by curiosity value, and decent word of mouth, the film enjoyed mostly strong numbers. In Hong Kong, it pulled in US$ 1.84 million. In Indonesia, it was a big hit with US$ 5.4 million ( RM22.7 million) from a mid- September release. In Japan, it was a predictable flop, earning just US$ 315,000 from a late September outing.