China's summer box office sizzling as anti-war drama fuels moviegoing rush

China's box office continues to enjoy a bumper summer, with a massive lineup of over 120 domestic and international titles drawing large crowds to cinemas during the lucrative three-month moviegoing season.

Data from Maoyan, one of China's major online movie ticket platforms, shows total summer box office earnings, including pre-sales, have surpassed 105 billion yuan (about 15 billion U.S. dollars) as of Wednesday morning since, the official summer box office period kicked off on June 1.

The figure marks a 500-million-yuan increase on the box office earnings reported on the same day last year.

Daily revenues have stayed above the 100-million-yuan mark for an unprecedented 40 consecutive days.

Currently leading the charge are a trio of heavyweight hits: Hong Kong director Stephen Chow's sports comedy "Kung Fu Soccer" with 2.3 billion yuan, Chinese animated film "All Wishes Come True!" with 1.6 billion, and Sony and Marvel's "Spider-Man: Brand New Day" with 1.4 billion.

The three films alone have together contributed over half of the summer season's cumulative box office, reflecting a diverse appetite among Chinese audiences for sports comedy, mythological fantasy, and superhero spectacle.

Following closely behind is "Once Upon a Time in the Middle East," telling the story of a Chinese restaurant in the Middle East in the 2000s when war breaks out. The film has become one of the season's biggest surprises. In just nine days of release, the film has raked in over 1.1 billion yuan, catapulting it to the fourth spot on the 2026 summer box office charts.

Since hitting domestic screens on Aug 11, the Chinese production has drawn positive feedback for both its perspective on war and vivid portrayal of life in the Middle East.

On the imported film front, Hollywood director Christopher Nolan's latest epic, "The Odyssey," has earned more than 300 million yuan since arriving in Chinese theaters on Aug 14, marking a solid debut for the acclaimed filmmaker's ancient Greek adaptation.

Shot entirely with IMAX film cameras, the blockbuster has attracted numerous Chinese fans to enjoy its spectacular visual effects in theaters across China.

China's summer box office sizzling as anti-war drama fuels moviegoing rush

The U.S. National Highway Traffic Safety Administration (NHTSA) has opened an investigation into Tesla's certification that its new Cybercab meets all applicable Federal Motor Vehicle Safety Standards (FMVSS).

The probe, formally designated as an Audit Query, was opened on Sept. 3 and covers an estimated 1,000 Cybercab vehicles, according to an NHTSA investigation document made public on Friday. It will examine the process and technical data Tesla relied upon when certifying the Cybercab, as well as related issues. Tesla began commercial deployment of a small number of Cybercab vehicles in Austin, Texas, on Thursday and notified the agency that it had certified the vehicles as compliant with all applicable FMVSS. Tesla also told the NHTSA that it plans to gradually expand commercial deployment of the Cybercab to include additional vehicles and locations.

The vehicles lack permanently attached conventional manual controls, such as a brake pedal, gas pedal, steering wheel and mirrors, according to the NHTSA.

The agency said the inquiry will examine, among other issues, the extent to which Tesla's certification depended on determinations that certain FMVSS are inapplicable to the Cybercab.

In the United States, the NHTSA establishes vehicle performance requirements, while automakers must certify that their vehicles meet applicable standards before entering the U.S. market, subject to agency oversight to confirm compliance. The NHTSA said it conducts investigations when certified vehicles appear not to adhere to those requirements.

U.S. regulator opens probe into Tesla Cybercab self-certification