As China begins to allow its residents to leave their homes and attempt to get back to business as usual, the country is also beginning to reopen its cinemas. As of this week, THR is reporting that 600 to 700 theaters in China have reopened their doors to customers. And to help entice them back to the cinema, the country is using some of the biggest films of all-time.
READ MORE: Chinese Cinemas Will Reopen With Older Films To Allow Exhibitors To Keep 100% Of Revenue
We already reported that China is utilizing older films as a way to ease people back into going to the movie theater, and by releasing previously-run films, the cinemas can keep all the revenue. The first wave of films included some Chinese films, as well as American releases such as “Green Book” and “A Dog’s Purpose.” But according to THR, the cinemas in China are planning to go even bigger, by re-releasing films such as the entire “Avengers” series, “Avatar,” “Interstellar,” and “Inception.”
While the release dates aren’t currently known, it’s clear that China is hoping that event films and blockbusters will be enough to bring folks back to the cinema. And if the biggest films and franchises in the world aren’t enough to kickstart the box office, what will?
READ MORE: More Than 500 Theaters Reopen In China After Being Closed For Nearly Two Months
Speaking of box office, it’s also interesting to note that the re-release of “Avengers: Endgame” and “Avatar” will have an effect on both films’ global totals, reigniting the battle for global supremacy. As of now, the difference between ‘Endgame’ and runner-up ‘Avatar’ is merely a little less than $8 million. Depending on how much the films make during this new run in China, could we see ‘Endgame’ lose its crown to the James Cameron film?
Obviously, all the Chinese cinemas want is for people to come back and spend money, so it doesn’t matter which film does more or less business. We’ll just have to wait and see how quickly the market rebounds, as it’ll probably present a model for how other countries around the world will handle the reopening effort.
