Chinese anime 'Ne Zha 2' is shattering box office records, but is it riding on an anti-Hollywood rhetoric?

Chinese anime 'Ne Zha 2' has shattered box office records becoming the highest-grossing animated film of all time globally. As per Reuters, the movie has dethroned Disney's "Inside Out 2'. The movie is the sequel to the 2019 Chinese hit 'Ne Zha', which focuses on a young, unruly demigod Ne Zha who befriends a dragon king. Though both are supposed to be sworn enemies, they become good friends.

While the film has sparked national pride in China, there are reports that it has also created hostility towards rival Hollywood offerings such as the latest installment of 'Captain America', as per Reuters.

The rivalry
Anti-Hollywood rhetoric has also emerged this week, with some on Chinese social media expressing frustration over the alleged lack of 'Ne Zha 2' screenings in North America.
"It doesn't matter if Ne Zha 2 can survive overseas, but Captain America 4 must die in China," according to one social media post, referring to 'Captain America: Brave New World' which opened in China last week.

One cinema in southwest China even told a local state-backed media that it would support 'Ne Zha 2' by not screening the Marvel movie. In an editorial on February 16, the nationalist Chinese tabloid Global Times wrote that 'Captain America: Brave New World' was faltering in China because Chinese audiences were 'losing patience with formulaic expressions reliant on special effects and drawn-out dialogue.'

In contrast, 'Ne Zha 2' connected with 'contemporary youth values' and had 'multi-character emotional resonance,' the newspaper wrote. The Marvel movie has made just 87.1 million yuan ($11.99 million) during its opening week in China, according to ticketing platform Maoyan, a fraction of the $88 million opening weekend ticket sales in the U.S.