Hong Kong box office shrinks for second year in a row

Hong Kong’s box office shrank for the second year in a row in 2017, with total receipts down by 5% to $237.23m (HK$1.85bn) compared to $251m (HK$1.95bn) in 2016.

The number of films released also declined by 5% with 331 titles compared to 348 in 2016, according to figures from Hong Kong Box Office.

US studio films dominated the market, with no local or other foreign titles breaking into the top ten. Beauty And The Beast was the highest-grossing film with $8.6m, but this was a big decrease on the top film of 2016, Captain America: Civil War, which took $14.5m.

In total, US films grossed $204.84m (HK$1.6bn) for an 86% market share, with 278 titles released, down by nine films on the previous year. Also topping the year-end box office were Spider-Man: Homecoming with $8.4m; Thor: Ragnorak, which is still playing and has grossed $6.6m to date; Despicable Me 3 with $6.4m; and Wonder Woman with $6.1m (see chart below).

Hong Kong films grossed a combined $32.38m (HK$253m) for a 14% market share, compared to an 18% share of the market in 2016. The number of local films released also declined from 61 in 2016 to just 53 titles last year.

Pang Ho-cheung’s Love Off The Cuff was the highest-grossing Hong Kong film with $3.9m, followed by Shock Wave ($3.3m), Journey To The West: The Demons Strike Back ($3m), Chasing The Dragon ($2.4m) and Mad World ($2.2m).

Reflecting the differing tastes of Hong Kong and mainland audiences, Chinese blockbuster Wolf Warrior 2 grossed less a million dollars in Hong Kong.

HONG KONG TOP TEN FOREIGN FILMS 2017

Title (release date) US$ box office (HK$ box office)

1. Beauty And The Beast (16/03/2017) $8.60m (HK$67.23m)
2. Spider-Man: Homecoming (06/07/2017) $8.41m (HK$65.76m)
3. Thor: Ragnarok** (26/10/2017) $6.59m (HK$51.52m)
4. Despicable Me 3 (29/06/2017) $6.38m (HK$49.89m)
5. Wonder Woman (30/05/2017) $6.11m (HK$47.78m)
6. Fast & Furious 8 (13/04/2017) $6.10m (HK$47.69m)
7. Justice League** (16/11/2017**) $5.58m (HK$43.60m)
8. The Boss Baby (13/04/2017) $5.34m (HK$41.77m)
9. Star Wars: The Last Jedi** (14/12/2017) $5.32m (HK$41.57m)
10. Logan (02/03/2017) $4.93m (HK$38.54m)

**Still on release

HONG KONG TOP TEN LOCAL FILMS 2017

Title (release date) US$ box office (HK$ box office)

1. Love Off The Cuff (27/04/2017) $3.87m (HK$30.26m)
2. Shock Wave (20/04/2017) $3.25m (HK$25.36m)
3. Journey To The West: The Demons Strike Back (28/01/2017) $3.02m (HK$23.63m)
4. Chasing The Dragon (28/09/2017) $2.40m (HK$18.73m)
5. Mad World (30/03/2017) $2.17m (HK$16.92m)
6. The Yuppie Fantasia 3 (26/01/2017) $2.07m (HK$16.19m)
7. 29+1 (11/05/2017) $1.95m (HK$15.25m)
8. 77 Heartbreaks (15/06/2017) $1.81m (HK$14.18m)
9. The Sinking City: Capsule Odyssey (07/09/2017) $1.30m (HK$10.16m)
10. Paradox (25/08/2017) $998,000 (HK$7.80m)

Source: Hong Kong Box Office – a joint initiative of Hong Kong Theatres Association (HKTA) and Hong Kong Motion Picture Industry Association (MPIA)