Summer ends at CN¥12.5B; film finishes third

Global Times reported on September 1 that, according to China Film Administration data, the June 1–August 31 summer season closed with box office revenue of CN¥12.498 billion (reported as US$1.85 billion), up 4.45% year-on-year, while cinema attendance reached 340 million, an increase of 5.86%, and 38.51 million screenings set a record high; domestic productions accounted for 71.71% of the total.[1]

Xinhua reported the same day that admissions rose to about 340 million from 321 million in 2025 and 284 million in 2024, marking a second consecutive year of growth for the June–August window, though the figures still fall short of the 2023 summer record of CN¥20.6 billion and 504 million admissions; CGTN added that the average ticket price of CN¥36.74 was the lowest for a summer movie season since 2022.[2][3]

According to CCTV News figures cited by Global Times, the season's top three films were all Chinese productions: Kung Fu Soccer with CN¥2.315 billion, Once Upon a Time in the Middle East with CN¥1.951 billion and All Wishes Come True! with CN¥1.846 billion, with Hollywood releases Spider-Man: Brand New Day and The Odyssey ranking fourth and fifth; Xinhua's wrap likewise placed the film among the four season titles that each cleared CN¥1 billion.[1][2]

As of August 31, China's total box office for 2026 had reached CN¥28.21 billion (≈US$3.9 billion), with 717 million cinema visits, according to CCTV News.[1]

Xinhua's season wrap noted that All Wishes Come True drew strong word-of-mouth acclaim by reimagining the eight Taoist immortals of Chinese folklore as flawed, striving individuals before their ascension; in an article published in People's Daily, director Mu Zhengyang said he set out to show the immortals as ordinary people first, writing of the group's arc: "Going it alone is fast. Going together goes further." He also cited one viewer's review: "I walked out of the theater and decided to become a kinder person."[2]

Chen Xuguang, director of Peking University's Institute of Film, Television and Theatre, told Xinhua the film updated classical mythology in ways that invite contemporary parallels — a strategy that worked for animated hits such as Ne Zha 2 and Nobody — and that its blend of folklore with a game-like narrative structure and visual style helped it connect with younger, more digitally native audiences.[2]