Stephen Chow’s Shaolin Soccer spin-off
Shaolin Soccer was Stephen Chow’s big crossover hit in America before Kung Fu Hustle became his biggest release on Western shores. As the World Cup winds down, Chow’s newest film, Kung Fu Soccer, rules the Chinese box office. The actor wrote and directed the spin-off to his sports hit, although he does not appear in the film after remaining behind the camera since his last on-screen role in 2008’s CJ7. Chow’s last directorial effort was 2019’s The New King of Comedy. Along with the timing of the World Cup, Kung Fu Soccer is also released on the 25th anniversary of Shaolin Soccer.
According to The Hollywood Reporter, Kung Fu Soccer set China’s box office ablaze with $214.3 million (RMB 1.46 billion) in just nine days, according to data from Artisan Gateway. Films usually see a drop off of various degrees on their second weekends, but Kung Fu Soccer topped its initial performance with $73.7 million (RMB 501.1 million) in a two-day frame from its first week’s two-day frame earning of $73.6 million (RMB 500.3 million).
Kung Fu Soccer
Per THR, in Kung Fu Soccer, “The film reworks the beloved original’s premise around an underdog, all-female squad whose players integrate martial arts into their game to make an improbable run at a tournament dubbed the Supreme Invincible Cup. Zhang Xiaofei (Hi, Mom) leads the cast as the team’s captain, with Dilraba Dilmurat as its star striker and Lay Zhang as its kung fu coach, plus guest turns from Hong Kong screen icon Carina Lau, Japanese star Takeru Satoh and U.S. comedian Jimmy O. Yang.”
When is the North American release?
Those who are waiting to see it in our neck of the woods can expect to see an American release sometime later this year. Although, a date has yet to be pinned down. Singapore’s Encore Films, a distributor that previously handled the international release of China’s record-setting animation Ne Zha 2 last year, has the rights to Kung Fu Soccer outside of mainland China and is currently working on deals territory-by-territory.
Are you excited for Chow’s new film? Have you been swept up by soccer fever during the World Cup?
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