'Moon Man''s $130 Million Opening Puts China's Box Office In A New Orbit

The sci-fi comedy “Moon Man” reached a $130 million opening weekend and helped the Chinese box office escape gravity.

Data from consultancy Artisan Gateway showed that the film earned RMB 873 million ($130 million) over three days and accounted for 90% of the market. National weekend theater business reached $144 million, the third-highest weekend of the year and the highest non-holiday weekend of 2022.

The good results were achieved despite the closure of some cinemas in key cities and the maintenance of capacity limitations in others.

"Moon Man" tells the story of the "last human in the universe" as an astronaut finds himself stranded on the moon after an asteroid wipes out life on earth.

It is directed by Zhang Chiyu, who previously directed the sports comedy “Never Say Die” in 2017

It was produced by Mahua FunAge, a consistently successful comedy production company with credits such as "Hello Mrs Money" and Goodby Mr Loser", alongside Alibaba Pictures.

Imax reported that the film grossed $6.4 million (including previews) from its theaters in China, making Imax's biggest three-day summer opening weekend China since September 2019. He also said that Imax cinemas accounted for 16 of the top 20 cinemas nationwide.

One of the most anticipated Chinese blockbusters of the year, more than 1.4 million moviegoers rated Moon Man as a "want to see" on Chinese online platforms ahead of its release. The film received outstanding reviews from audiences with a score of 9.4 and 9.5 on Maoyan and Taopiaopiao, respectively.

"We are very encouraged by the exceptional opening of 'Moon Man', which offers a clear sign that audiences are eager to return to theaters for the IMAX experience," said Edwin Tan, CEO of IMAX China. "'Moon Man' marks a crucial milestone in the film industry's recovery this year, as well as a major step forward in the production of Chinese sci-fi blockbusters."

The film crews dumped 200 tons of sand and gravel on a 6,000 square meter space spread over 15 studios and built a life-size model of a lunar base. About 95% of the shots in "Moon Man" use special and visual effects.

Artisan Gateway reports that the Chinese box office year-to-date total is now $3.09 billion. That's still 33% behind 2021, but "Moon Man"'s blistering start represents a two percentage point course correction from the previous 35% drift.

The previous weekend's winner, "Detective Vs Sleuths" made $3.5 million over the weekend for a total of $98.8 million since its release on July 8, 2022. "Lighting up the Stars,” a previous winner that debuted in June, grossed $3.4 million. over the past weekend for a cumulative $245 million.

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