The Chinese animated blockbuster "Ne Zha 2" is off to a strong start in Thailand, with impressive pre-sales and reviews set for a promising box office run after much anticipation, said a film marketing professional in the country.
Narute Jiensnong is chief marketing officer of the Major Cineplex Group, Thailand's largest operator of movie theaters. In an interview with CGTN following the official release of "Ne Zha 2" in the country on Thursday, he noted that around 6,000 pre-sale tickets were sold before the film's opening day.
"That's a good sign for that kind of movie that had a good box office prior to the opening date. Let me give you a picture for the first one that we did in Thailand. The first one has crossed about 10 million baht (about 297,400 U.S. dollars) in total box office in Thailand. We expect the second one to double at least about 20 million baht (about 594,800 U.S. dollars). That's our goal for Major Cineplex. And I think nationwide the total Thailand market maybe around like 30 million baht in total box office for this one," he said.
Having already become the 5th highest-grossing film of all time, the international appeal of Ne Zha 2 is evident. According to Narute, there are already signs it will have a particular draw for Thai audiences.
"For the movie, I think it's very appealing. And I think it's a very high-quality production. I saw the trailer, I haven't seen the whole movie yet, but I saw the trailers and I read all the comments online. Yesterday, we had about 200 YouTubers, influencers and bloggers coming to watch the movie, and all positive reviews so far. All them have a very good review toward the themes. The quality is very high in the production value. The script and the story line is very appealing to the Thai market and they think that Thai will love this kind of story line. I think it will do well in Thailand. So basically all the reviewers and YouTubers in Thailand love this movie," said Narute.
He then noted that the shared cultural values between Thailand and China contribute to the appeal of Chinese films, adding that Chinese movies have generally performed quite well in Thailand.
Available in more than 390 cinemas across the Southeast Asian country, "Ne Zha 2" has been screened in a Thai-dubbed version and the original Chinese version with subtitles to cater to different audience preferences.
Pre-sales indicate 'Ne Zha 2' off to strong start in Thailand: industry insider
