Asia Weekend Box Office: This weekend brought two very different stories from Asia’s biggest film markets. In mainland China, Stephen Chow returned to the top of the box office with Kung Fu Soccer. In South Korea, Disney’s live-action Moana stepped in to claim the No. 1 spot. Here’s everything that happened across both markets during the July 10–12 weekend.
Kung Fu Soccer, Stephen Chow’s long-awaited spinoff of his 2001 cult classic Shaolin Soccer, opened across mainland China on Saturday, July 12, and immediately dominated the market. The film earned $38.3 million on its opening day alone and closed the two-day weekend with a total of $73.6 million, accounting for nearly three-quarters of all tickets sold in China during the weekend.
Audiences on ticketing platform Maoyan gave the film a score of 9.4 out of 10. Based on current momentum, Maoyan is projecting a total China run of $368 million, though early projections are routinely revised as a film moves deeper into its theatrical run.
Minions & Monsters slipped to second place in its second weekend in China, earning $8.1 million, down roughly 50 percent from its debut weekend and taking its 10-day China total to $32.4 million. New animated local release Three Kingdoms: The Beginning from Light Chaser Animation opened in third place with a cumulative $6.4 million since its Friday debut.
A24’s horror phenomenon Backrooms held fourth with $3.2 million, bringing its three-week China total to $21.8 million and its worldwide gross past $330 million. Local sci-fi comedy Keep Real rounded out the top five with $3 million for the weekend, taking its 11-day total to $18.5 million.
The overall China market year-to-date now stands at $2.74 billion, down 38.6 percent from the same point last year, a gap largely shaped by the historic early run of Ne Zha 2 in 2025.
In South Korea, Disney’s live-action Moana made its debut and went straight to the top of the box office. The remake of the beloved 2016 animated film attracted 403,822 admissions over the weekend, bringing its cumulative admissions to 511,078 as of Sunday, according to the Korean Film Council.
Starring Dwayne Johnson and Catherine Laga’aia, the film opened to $43 million in North America during its debut weekend, below industry expectations, but it found a warmer initial reception in South Korea, where it debuted at No. 1.
Korean mystery thriller The Eyes, starring Shin Min-ah, continued its impressive run by holding firm in second place. The film attracted 257,816 admissions over the weekend, bringing its cumulative total to 1,277,263 admissions since release. Now in its third weekend, The Eyes continues to demonstrate steady week-to-week holds, making it one of the more durable local performers of the summer.
Toy Story 5 slipped to third place in its fourth weekend in the country, adding 238,524 admissions over the weekend. Its cumulative total in South Korea now stands at 2,580,327 admissions, continuing an impressive theatrical run in the market.
Zombie thriller Colony held fifth place with 37,008 admissions for the weekend, continuing to quietly build what is already one of the biggest cumulative totals for a Korean film this year. K-pop comedy Wild Sing finished seventh with 12,321 admissions.
The overall South Korean market total for the July 10–12 weekend reached $8.2 million, up slightly from the previous weekend’s $7.3 million, another encouraging sign as the country’s summer movie season gathers momentum.
China and South Korea delivered two very different box office stories this weekend. While Stephen Chow’s return dominated the Chinese market, Disney found stronger footing in South Korea with Moana, highlighting the different audience preferences across Asia’s two biggest theatrical markets as the summer season continues.
Read More:
- Spotlight: Making Injustice Heard in a World of Untouchable Power
- Harry Potter and the Question Every Reboot Must Answer
- Good Films Are Often Bad Experiences
- Top 10 Sequels That Elevated Cinema: When Hollywood Got Better the Second Time
- How much does responsibility seep into filmmaking? Or does it at all?