The Chinese box office is set for another relatively slow week as Universal’s "Seventh Son" enters the market along with a 3D re-release—"Kung Fu Hustle"—and two homegrown films—"The Unbearable Lightness of Inspector Fan and Out Cast"—that were previously delayed. "Lotus Code"—a film with anti-Japanese elements—also opens.
"Seventh Son", a fantasy flick from Universal that stars Jeff Bridges, Julianne Moore and Ben Barnes, has already earned nearly $36 million overseas from 34 territories. This past weekend, "Seventh Son" posted first place openings in the Philippines, Bulgaria, Egypt, the Middle East and United Arab Emirates. Based on "Seventh Son"’s steady performance thus far, expectations in China are modest. BoxOffice.com doesn’t anticipate strong returns from the film’s North America release, which is slated for February 6 after a couple of delays. We are predicting only a $19 million total gross, which means that overseas grosses will easily account for more than 80% of the global haul—a common story these days.
It won’t be easy for "Seventh Son" to compete with "Miss Granny" and "Night at the Museum: Secret of the Tomb" considering that both films are expected to enter more theaters this week. "The Taking of Tiger Mountain 3D" is also holding up well.
Of all the other releases, "The Unbearable Lightness of Inspector" Fanlooks the strongest thanks to an impressive ensemble cast that includes Taiwan’s Ethan Ruan, Yang Yang (TV’s "Red Chamber"), Yang Zishan ("So Young", Miss Granny), Zhou Dongyu (Love of the Hawthorn Tree, Breakup Buddies).
Phil Contrino, Vice President/Chief Analyst of Boxoffice.com contributed to this article.
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