“Barbenheimer” (a term coined for the same-day release of “Barbie” and “Oppenheimer” last summer) was a true cultural phenomenon for many parts of the world. The movie theater was filled with costumes in various shades of pink. Social media was abuzz with opinions. And these films grossed a total of $2.3 billion worldwide.
However, the story of “Babenheimer” unfolded differently in China. Neither movie made it into the top 30 movies released in the U.S. last year. In fact, as my colleagues Claire Hu, Brooks Burns, and Daisuke Wakabayashi have reported, the Chinese box office has had a bad year for Hollywood as a whole, with only a few American films in the top 10 grossing. There was no.
These numbers must be tough for Hollywood studios. China has often been the remedy for declining domestic revenues. In 2012, seven of his top 10 productions in China were American productions, and Chinese companies were soon investing billions of dollars in American entertainment. Studios did their best to appease the Chinese market, modifying scripts due to censorship and putting pressure on Chinese product introductions.
But in recent years, as tensions between the two governments escalated, China began to look inward. Claire Hu said the company is investing in domestic filmmakers and film production technologies such as CGI. And they have begun construction of thousands of new movie screens as part of a push to expand the reach of movies that “showcase China’s national spirit,” officials said. The investment appears to be paying off. Last year’s box office toppers were Chinese-made films such as “The Wandering Earth II,” a sci-fi film with special effects and collectivism themes.
Chinese audiences are shunning Hollywood for domestic film options that are improving in quality and reflect their country’s social issues and values. “Chinese films have content that Chinese audiences can relate to culturally and emotionally,” Claire told me. Examples include “No More Bets,” based on a real-life scam in Southeast Asia where people were kidnapped and forced to work online scams, and “The Battle at Changjin,” the country’s highest-grossing film of all time. Examples include. About China’s victory over the United States during the Korean War.
Hannah Lee, a 27-year-old die-hard Marvel fan who grew up watching westerns, told Claire that Hollywood needs to change its approach if it wants to succeed in China. “If we don’t want to come down from the heights to see what we like, it’s natural to be swept away,” Hannah said.
Will Hollywood studios double down on business in China, adapt to the new normal, or cut their losses? Changes in Chinese audiences are already changing Hollywood’s calculus more broadly. Studios have decided to cut spending on the kinds of franchise films that have historically relied on the Chinese market to recoup their large budgets.
“Hollywood will need to weigh the losses and gains if it wants to meet the demands of the Chinese market and make audiences feel more relatable,” Claire said.
Read the full article by Claire, Brooks Burns and Daisuke here.
For many: The Economist reports that after 10 years of working with top filmmakers, Chinese authorities have figured out how to make watchable propaganda films.
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Aryna Sabalenka defeated Zheng Qinwen to win her second consecutive Australian Open tennis title.
From opinions
Rather than criticize the US response to the developing crisis in the Red Sea, China should do more to protect the Red Sea trade route. Isaac Cardon and jennifer kavanagh write.
Click here for the column by Nicholas Kristoff about the war with China, and Maureen Dowd About Trump.
Sunday’s Question: Is Texas Gov. Greg Abbott’s border fence self-defense?
Texas claims the right to protect itself from “invasion” regardless of federal policy. “Texas will have to make difficult choices when the federal government is not enforcing the law and clearly isn’t,” wrote Nicole Russell of the Fort Worth Star-Telegram. But “if he’s right, states could use the discovery of an ‘invasion’ as an excuse to wage war against whomever they wanted — perhaps including the federal government,” said Stephen Vladeck of Houston. written in the chronicle.
Je Sui An Rockstar: After 130 years in the restaurant business, Maxim’s in Paris is starting a new chapter. Can a forgotten hotspot regain its cool?
there: What do you call a galaxy without stars? Dark galaxies have joined dark energy and dark matter in the cosmic lexicon.
Words via the Times: The word “pose” is associated with the dance style voguing, but it’s not part of the vocabulary, it’s part of the movement.
Oath: In 1998, they quickly fell in love. Once same-sex marriage became legal, they were too busy raising their daughter and building a life to officially marry.
Life lived: David Skull was a witty historian of horror entertainment who examined the cultural importance of movies for scaring us. He died at the age of 71.
Speaking | From The Times Magazine
We spoke to actor John Malkovich, who co-stars in Apple TV+’s upcoming series The New Look.
You first became known for your work with Steppenwolf Theater Company. It was an emotionally conflicting work that pushed the audience away. I’m curious about your thoughts on how modern audiences differ from audiences back then. Hey, each generation has the right to do its own thing. There are things my kids like that I don’t really understand, but it’s just the natural progression of life. Sometimes things seem strange or unrecognizable, but I’m 70 years old. As Linda Roman said in Death of a Salesman, aging is “life is something you shed,” so it’s perfectly natural that they seem unrecognizable.
You’ve done a lot of different jobs, but the Malkovich-ness always comes through. You’re not the kind of actor that people talk about because they get into the character. There are kind of technical actors who do very purely technical things that are often great. I don’t really, and I’m not sure how fascinated I am by it. I can appreciate it, especially when someone plays it very well, but I don’t think there are 50 characters like that among actors. There are about 5 of them.
I would like to return to the passage from “Death of a Salesman.” “Life is something you can throw away.” What are you throwing away? You have to let go of your past and connections. At this age, people who were very close to me have passed away. I have someone I love to talk to. Sometimes they appear in my dreams and we have conversations in our dreams, but we never see each other again. It’s a natural part of life. Cast-off means that it can float. It won’t be a burden. It’s gone.
Read the rest of the interview here.
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What to watch out for
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A Hong Kong court will tomorrow consider a motion to liquidate real estate developer China Evergrande, which defaulted on its offshore debt in 2021.
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Donald Trump’s civil fraud trial is scheduled to be decided on Wednesday.