Cinemas Partially Reopen In China, And Doolittle Tops The Box Office

Cnemas remain closed in many parts of the world--including across the US, where AMC is looking to re-open in mid-to-late August. In China, however, some cinemas have started to reopen, with social distancing enforced, as certain areas are declared safe from the COVID-19 pandemic. While the weekend box office is a fraction of what it usually would be, the figures are higher than they've been in some time.

As reported by Variety, China has reopened 4900 cinemas over the July 24-26 weekend--about 44% of the cinemas in the country, each allowing for about 30% capacity. This included 369 IMAX screens. Topping the box office was Robert Downey Jr.'s latest film, Doolittle, which earned $4.71 million--higher than any film has earned over a weekend in some time.

The movie, which bombed at the US box office, currently stands as the third highest grossing cinema release of 2020. The film's success in China over the weekend is unlikely to lift it above the second highest film, Sonic the Hedgehog, any time soon.

In second place was Vin Diesel's Bloodshot, which earned $2.61 million. Vin Diesel properties like Fast & Furious and xXx have historically done fairly well in China.

In total, the Chinese box office earned $12.6 million over the weekend. Here's the full top 10.

Chinese Box Office July 24-26

• Doolittle: $4.71 million
• Bloodshot: $2.61 million
• Sheep Without A Shepherd: $2 million
• Coco: $740k
• Zootopia: $290k
• The Pursuit of Happyiness: $220k
• The Message: >$200k
• Ne Zha: >$200k
• A First Farewell: >$200k
• Chinese Odyssey Part Two: Cinderella: >$200k

The top film at the US box office over the weekend was The Rental, actor Dave Franco's debut film as a director. It earned $420k, according to Box Office Mojo, and is also available through rental services.