China Will Rerelease ‘Avengers’ Franchise, ‘Avatar’ In Theaters
In late January, China was forced to close down most of its movie theaters — around 70,000 screens — in order to prevent the coronavirus outbreak from worsening. Now, 600 to 700 cinemas have officially reopened now that China has begun to keep the virus contained.
With all the new movie release delays and early moves to VOD, what movies could possibly be playing in Chinese movie theaters? This looks like a job for The Avengers. And Avatar.
Official release dates for these movies have yet to be announced. According to The Hollywood Reporter, these films are set to start showing in China "basically, whenever the DCPs reach the cinemas."
The four installments in the Avengers franchise collectively grossed $1.3 billion in China when they first debuted. In 2009, James Cameron's space epic Avatar earned $202 million from Chinese box offices. Also joining the roster of blockbusters are Christopher Nolan's sci-fi hits Interstellar and Inception.
Initially, Avatar was intended to be a movie series like Avengers. After nearly 10 years of delays, not one but four sequels were finally in the works. But of course, production on them has now been delayed due to coronavirus.
For many years, Avatar was the highest grossing movie of all time, sitting high at $2.744 billion worldwide. That changed in 2019, when it was dethroned by Avengers: Endgame with $2.798 billion. Now, it seems like Chinese moviegoers will have the final ruling decision in which movie will take home the title. That is, if they feel safe enough to return to a crowded multiplex.
Gallery — The Highest Grossing Movies of All Time