Chinese Ambassador Ni Ruchi attended the premiere of summer movie sensation Ne Zha 2, a Chinese animated film, which will get its general release in major theatres in Bahrain on Thursday.
Screened at Vox Cinemas at City Centre, the premiere was attended by Shaikha Jawaher bint Khalifa Al Khalifa and Bahrain-China Friendship Association president Jawad Al Hawaj, along with other diplomats and officials.
Ne Zha 2, which is based loosely on Chinese mythology and a famous 16th-century novel, has made $2.2 billion at the global box office, including $20 million in the United States and Canada alone.
Ne Zha 2 poster
Since its release in China in January, the film quickly became the highest-grossing animated film of all time, and the first animated film in history to cross the $2bn mark.
An English-language version is set to be released in the United States next month, according to industry insiders.
It will feature the voice of Michelle Yeoh, the first Asian star to win best actress at the Academy Awards for her role in Everything Everywhere All at Once.
Yeoh will voice Ne Zha’s mother. The movie will also feature Aleks Le, Crystal Lee and Vincent Rodriguez III.
The current version is not short of admirers though. Reviewers highlight its ‘stunning animation’ and modern take on Chinese mythology, claiming it has ‘breath-taking visuals, intricate details and fluid action’.
Cinema-goers flocked to the premiere of China’s hottest animated movie.
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