"Warcraft," the film adaptation of the popular online game, is likely to be a bigger blockbuster than the last "Star Wars" feature in China, showing that the Force is no match against powerful backers in the world’s second-largest movie market.
The movie, co-produced by billionaire Wang Jianlin’s Legendary Entertainment and backed by gaming giant Tencent Holdings Ltd., may generate as much as 2 billion yuan ($305 million) in ticket sales in the country after it debuts on Wednesday, according to Nomura Holdings Inc. analyst Richard Huang. By comparison, Walt Disney Co.’s "Star Wars: The Force Awakens," the highest-grossing film in the U.S. last year, couldn’t replicate that success with Chinese moviegoers when it opened in the country in January.
Nomura’s projections position "Warcraft" to be second only to the record-breaking romantic comedy "The Mermaid" at the Chinese box office this year and help illustrate the country’s emerging film tastes. The hype surrounding the movie also underscores the popularity of Activision Blizzard Inc.’s “World of Warcraft” game in China, where there’s an estimated fan base of about 10 million people.
"Given their familiarity with the game, the plot is going to resonate when Chinese people watch the movie," said Huang. "Most Chinese weren’t that familiar with the ‘Star Wars’ franchise."
"Warcraft" has already raked in about 141 million yuan in advance-ticket sales, according to industry-data provider Entgroup. The movie opens in the U.S. on Friday.
Of the 100 million "World of Warcraft” fans worldwide, at least 10 percent are from China, according to GF Securities.
That popularity helped line up Chinese backing. Besides the involvement of Wang’s Legendary -- poised to be part of Wang’s Wanda Cinema Line Co. -- and Tencent, the movie counts Chinese entertainment giant Huayi Brothers Media Corp. among its investors.
Wanda Cinema rose as much as 3.5 percent in Shenzhen trading on Tuesday.
Wang’s companies may benefit the most among the Chinese companies if the film succeeds. Besides Legendary getting its cut as a co-producer, Wanda Cinema will likely keep half of the ticket sales from its theaters, plus a 5 percent to 7 percent distribution fee, according to Everbright Securities Co.
Though "Star Wars" didn’t turn into a blockbuster in China, other Disney films have succeeded in the country this year. "The Jungle Book" and "Zootopia" were among the top seven box-office earners, according to Entgroup.