‘Kung Fu Panda 3’ Maintains Top Global Box Office Spot For Second Week
Kung Fu Panda 3 remained in first place at both U.S. and China box offices, which was enough to make it the top grossing film globally for a second straight week.
In the United States, Po’s third adventure earned $21 million, lifting its total to $69.1M. In China, the film added $15.4M, boosting its total to $101.7M. Panda 3 has only opened in a handful of other territories so far; its two other major countries at the moment are South Korea, where it added $4.3M in its second weekend ($16.7M total), and Russia, where it snatched $2.8M ($9.2M total).
DreamWorks Animation can’t afford another flop at this moment, and thankfully, it seems they’ve got a modest hit on their hands. In its first two weeks, Kung Fu Panda 3 has grossed $129.1M internationally, and with U.S. added, a combined global total of $198.1M.
But there are some reasons for concern. In the U.S., its $69.1M two-weekend total pales against the two-week totals of the original Kung Fu Panda ($117.3M) or the sequel ($100M). To put it another way, the current installment is attracting less than half the moviegoers that the original film had at this point in its run (7.9 million ticket admissions versus 16.4 million admissions).
As mentioned in last week’s box office report, that shouldn’t be a big problem since DreamWorks is relying on the international grosses to prop up the Kung Fu Panda franchise. But the film also stumbled badly in China last weekend, where it plummeted over 70% from its opening weekend.
The drop is being attributed to Chinese New Year, a holiday when families stay at home rather than attend movies. Whether Po recovers in China’s post-holiday period remains to be seen, but DreamWorks now faces an uphill battle to reclaim the title for highest-grossing Chinese animated film from last year’s Monkey King: Hero is Back, which earned $153M.
Some other animation-related U.S. weekend grosses:
2016 Oscar Nominated Short Films: $400K ($1.2M total)
Alvin and the Chipmunks: The Road Chip: $320K ($83.7M)
Norm of the North: $175K ($16.3M)
Anomalisa: $160K ($2.2M)
