UK-based, pan-European distributor Trinity CineAsia has acquired theatrical rights from Beijing Enlight Media for record-breaking Chinese animation Ne Zha 2 across 37 territories, including the UK, Ireland, Germany, France and Spain.
The film has grossed more than $2BN, overtaking Inside Out 2, and ranking sixth among the highest-grossing films worldwide, behind Avatar, Avatar: The Way Of Water, Avengers: Endgame, Star Wars: The Force Awakens and Titanic.
A theatrical release in UK and Ireland has been set for March 21 with previews from March 14. Other European releases will follow with theatrical outings expected for France, Germany, Spain, Italy, Benelux and Scandinavian territories. Trinity CineAsia managing director Cedric Behrel told Deadline that he plans to give the film a theatrical release in as many other European territories as possible.
It’s understood that streaming rights for the film are being negotiated separately. Four Hong Kong companies – Intercontinental Film Distributors, Emperor Motion Pictures, Mandarin Films and Sil-Metropole – joined forces to acquire theatrical rights in Hong Kong where the film has grossed more than $4M.
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Released in mainland China on January 29 during the Lunar New Year holidays, the film became the first ever to gross $1BN in a single market and, as of March 3, it had grossed a total of $2BN. It has also grossed $18M in North America through CMC Pictures, which is also releasing the film in Australia, New Zealand and some other international territories.
Based on the Chinese novel Fengshen Yanyi (Investiture Of The Gods), the story follows a demon child raised by humans, who forms an uneasy alliance with the dragon prince, Ao Bing, in an epic battle to protect their clans. In the aftermath, with their bodies teetering on the edge of destruction, Ne Zha embarks on a quest to obtain an elixir to restore Ao Bing’s body, uncovering a dangerous conspiracy in the process.
Directed by Yang Yu (a.k.a. Jiaozi), the film was produced by Enlight Media’s Coloroom Pictures animation subsidiary and Jiaozi’s Chengdu-based Coco Cartoon. Five years in the making, it employed a team of 4,000 animators putting together 1,900 special effects shots.
Trinity CineAsia focuses on the distribution of Chinese and other Asian films, with recent releases including Detective Chinatown 1900, also a hit over the recent Lunar New Year; Hong Kong films Twilight Of The Warriors: Walled In and The Last Dance, with the latter now the third-highest-grossing Hong Kong film of all time in the UK and Ireland; Japanese anime Detective Conan: The Million-Dollar Pentagram; and Chinese director Guan Hu’s Black Dog, which premiered at Cannes last year.
Behrel said: “Rarely do you get a film that truly defines the era, shows again the unique power of cinema to move audiences, and makes an indelible mark on culture. This is Ne Zha 2. It signifies a major turning point in further establishing Trinity CineAsia as a pan-European distributor.
After years spent cultivating the audience and building relationships with exhibitors, press and other stakeholders, as well as our online presence, it is a landmark for Trinity CineAsia in terms of reaching the far corners of the continent and developing our offering to a far larger audience. We look forward to more adventures in this realm.”
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