Beyond the Box Office: What Ne Zha 2 Reveals About Globalization in China’s Film Industry

Animation blockbuster Nezha: The Devil Boy Conquers the Dragon King (“Nezha 2”) earned over 15 billion RMB in China during the Lunar New Year of 2025, ranking sixth in global box office history and showcasing cutting-edge Chinese animation technology. By February, it reached overseas markets, premiering in North America with IMAX screenings, followed by releases in Australia and New Zealand. Social media fueled hopes that Nezha could be China’s global cinematic breakthrough. Yet, its performance outside China was markedly less impressive than its New Year beginnings.

It lacked the necessary critical focus on distribution strategies and market engagement practices, drifting worldwide with little more than quality content on a wave of domestic popularity.

High-quality films such as Ne Zha 2 are essential for advancing China’s visual culture and extending its reach overseas. Their success, however, depends on building strong distribution capabilities and adapting to the tastes of international audiences, rather than relying solely on domestic box office’s strength or social media momentum.

Why Nezha struggled to reach the global heights of Crouching Tiger, Hidden Dragon

The film faced significant challenges abroad. Many Chinese fans lamented online the limited screenings being scheduled in North America and elsewhere, contrasting sharply with the comprehensive distribution that Hollywood films benefited from worldwide.

While for the general public, discussions about films often center on directors, stars, and content, industry insiders recognize that successful global releases hinge on a well-planned distribution scheme. A film’s biggest challenge is how to promote it effectively across diverse markets, manage viewers’ expectations, and sustain buzz through targeted marketing and festival exposure.

A stark comparison highlights the issue. Hollywood’s Crouching Tiger, Hidden Dragon (2000) benefited from meticulous international marketing, festival premieres, and theatrical strategies. It entered the U.S. market in December 2000, with over 2,000 theaters, backed by a robust promotional campaign and dedicated publicity efforts from Sony Pictures. The film traveled through major Asian markets, Europe, and North America, with Ang Lee personally engaging with media, attending festivals, and building audiences from well before its U.S. release.

Conversely, Nezha 2 was produced largely by Chinese companies without the involvement of major Hollywood distributors or extensive global marketing campaigns. Its international release lacked the coordinated festival entries, local premieres, or media blitz needed to sustain momentum. Without strategic partnerships, targeted engagement, or widespread festival presence, Nezha missed vital opportunities to generate anticipation in key markets.

Nezha 1 and 2 were produced by Beijing Enlight Media Pictures, and director-owned Chengdu Cocoa Bean Animation and Chengdu Free Realm Culture. Chinese film and television giants or their overseas partners were not involved. Beijing Enlight Pictures managed distribution in China. Globally, Enlight worked with the distribution company Well Go USA for Nezha 1, switching to Chinese-funded CMC Pictures for Nezha 2.

Director Yu Yang, the relatively young director nicknamed Jiaozi or Dumpling in English, had worked on Nezha for many years. When asked about his movies going global on Chinese state TV in January 2025, Jiaozi said, “It depends on the content. The script, story, and characters have to work from the beginning, as it is these things that make or break a movie for its audience.” He insisted that “the first step is to make something you like, because then the Chinese audience will like it, and gradually you will make something better and better.”

His interest in the story may have resulted in him overlooking the issue of distribution. As an important commercial investor behind the Nezha project, distributer Enlight Pictures should have considered introducing strategic partners in advance and investing resources in the global distribution of Nezha products in the future. For the stumbling block that really troubles Chinese films in going global is their distribution capacity.

Content quality alone is insufficient for international success. The Crouching Tiger formula combined cinematic excellence with strategic, aggressive distribution and publicity, which turned it into a cultural phenomenon. Nezha, despite its artistry and domestic triumph, failed to replicate this level of global outreach.

Lessons learned and future directions

Successful non-English films like Crouching Tiger make great efforts to participate in major international film festivals for visibility, conduct local press conferences and media engagements, implement regional marketing campaigns, build regional distributor connections. They focus on scheduling theatrical releases at strategically significant moments such as around awards season, and engage with audiences online via interviews and community events, while keeping up a steady stream of social media posts.

Nezha’s experience shows that neglecting these aspects leads to limited screenings, poor market penetration, and missed opportunities to cultivate a global fanbase. To realize the full potential of Chinese cinema on the international stage, industry stakeholders must prioritize building distribution networks, fostering international partnerships, and designing tailored promotion strategies.

High domestic box office numbers and national pride are vital, but they are just the beginning for Chinese films seeking global recognition. The case of Nezha highlights that content alone cannot guarantee international success. To compete with Hollywood’s sophisticated distribution systems and cultural outreach, Chinese filmmakers must adopt a strategic, multi-faceted approach to global marketing. Only then can Chinese movies truly go beyond borders and leave a lasting mark on world cinema.

This article was originally published in Chinese on Caixin.