FilmRise has acquired North American rights to the Chinese smash hit “Monster Hunt” from Edko Films.
The pic from “Shrek” animator Raman Hui is currently the highest grossing movie at the Chinese box office, and is expected to soon surpass “Furious 7” as the biggest film of all time in China, with over $370 million.
FilmRise plans to release the CG/live-action film in early 2016.
The live action-CGI hybrid — in which humans have driven cute monsters from their homeland — is inspired partly by monsters in classic Chinese literature. Hui was a supervising animator on the first two films of the “Shrek” franchise and co-directed “Shrek The Third.”
"Monster Hunt” was released in China on July 16 and grossed more than $162 million in eight days.
"We are beyond thrilled to be bringing ‘Monster Hunt’ to a whole new audience here in North America, after the film broke records and charmed millions of theater-goers in Asia,” FilmRise CEO Danny Fisher said. “With its spellbinding CGI and remarkable action sequences, the film provides plenty of entertainment for kids and adults alike.”
The deal was negotiated by Max Einhorn at FilmRise and Julian Chiu at Edko Films.