The Great Wall, China’s first effort at a western-style celebrity blockbuster, starring actor Matt Damon, scored a box office success in its first weekend at home, making Rmb460m ($66m) since Friday.
The figure, announced on Monday by the State Administration of Radio, Film and Television, represented nearly half the film’s $150m budget and proved that, despite some controversy over having a Hollywood star in the lead role in a Chinese film, it was a winner with domestic audiences.
Huang Guofeng, a film industry analyst with Analysys International, the Beijing consultancy, said having a “pretty good” opening weekend would be critical for the film’s future success. It would determine how much further screening time it received. “So far, the theatre managers have a positive outlook for this film based on its performance,” he said.