Reference News Network published a report entitled "Hollywood's China Syndrome: Collapse and Opportunity" on December 21. The report is compiled as follows:
During the three-year hiatus from 2020 to 2022 caused by the pandemic and the diplomatic relationship between the United States and China, very few Hollywood films made it to the screens of Chinese theaters.
As the world's second-largest grossing market, China's 2023 box office total has totaled $7.3 billion so far in 2023, and the country's market share of all imported films has collapsed, accounting for less than 15% as of early December. According to estimates by film industry consultancy Artison Gwee***, the share of Hollywood films is only 12%.
Chinese audiences seem to have said goodbye to American film series and Tom Cruise-esque individualism.
Yang Xianghua, president of China's leading giant iQiyi Film and Overseas Business Business Group, said: "I have watched every Hollywood movie I can see since I was a child. It's not so much to see now. ”
The decline in the appeal of Hollywood's American series is not unique to China, but the scale and sophistication of competition in the local film industry is unique to China.
China has invested heavily in building a skilled filmmaking industry, and top directors are launching "leitmotif" films, that is, films with patriotic themes.
Under these guidance, new theme films are thriving, including science fiction films, which have earned 5$700 million "The Wandering Earth 2", as well as crime films with Chinese characteristics, such as box office revenue of 5The $4.4 billion All or Nothing. Despite this, this year's box office champion was directed by veteran director Zhang Yimou, who won 6The $4.5 billion costume drama "Man Jianghong".
Lance Bow, senior manager at Artison Gerve***, said: "Many popular homegrown films are based on true stories or the lives of ordinary people and have relevance to real life. In addition, the recent rise of crime suspense dramas has the characteristics of unpredictable storylines and cleverly conceived storylines, keeping the audience guessed and interested. The ending of the story is difficult, sometimes surprising, and becomes a hot topic of discussion. Hollywood sequels have become easy to be ** from start to finish.
Infrastructure is also increasingly conducive to local Chinese content. Now the company has cut off its dependence on imported film and television content. As movie theaters move to smaller cities, interest in foreign stars and stories wanes.
According to the latest edition of China's Film Yearbook, many Chinese audiences believe that the quality of local films has improved in recent years. At the same time, 25% of viewers believe that imported films have lost their creativity.
A spokesperson for Maoyan Entertainment, a Chinese movie ticketing platform, said: "Chinese audiences' interest in superhero-based films is declining. While these films have historically performed well at the box office in Chinese mainland, only "Guardians of the Galaxy Vol. 3" has stood out this year. ”
But China may now be opening its doors to Hollywood again. Industry sources told the "Variety" weekly reporter that the quota for imported films (referring to films that do not buy foreign film copyrights and the box office shown in China belongs to foreign film companies, but is given to domestic film exhibition institutions to share - this newspaper's note) has been quietly abolished. The box office consultancy Gower Street Analytical estimates that the number of such films may have exceeded 37 this year.
The most obvious view is that Hollywood no longer poses a threat to China's domestic film industry, and the removal of quotas will ease the US-China dispute and further stimulate the Chinese box office. (Compiled by Cao Weiguo).