China Box Office: ‘Return to Silent Hill’ Opens on Top as ‘Zootopia 2’ and ‘Avatar: Fire and Ash’ Continue Run

China’s box office was led by Davis Films’ new horror release “Return to Silent Hill,” which debuted at No. 1 with RMB66.1 million ($9.3 million) over the Jan. 23–25 weekend, according to Artisan Gateway.

With a worldwide cume of $19.3 million, “Return to Silent Hill” is the No. 5 film globally, according to Comscore.

Taopiaopiao’s action comedy “Busted Water Pipes” opened with $3.9 million. Directed by Zhou Difei, the film follows veteran cop Yu Dahai (Eddie Peng) and his squad, whose spotless, crime-free record has left them so underutilized that they begin fabricating cases to look busy. When the police station’s main water pipe bursts, however, the team stumbles into a real operation: a crew of tomb raiders posing as plumbers.

Disney’s “Zootopia 2” moved to third in its ninth weekend, earning $3.7 million. The animated sequel has now amassed $621 million in China, remaining one of the market’s top-grossing imports of the season.

Maoyan Movie’s crime thriller “The Fire Raven” placed fourth, adding $2.9 million to lift its cumulative total to $57.2 million. Directed and written by Sam Quah, the film stars Peng Yuchang, Alan Aruna and Chang Ning and follows the reopening of a long-dormant murder case that exposes a wider network of corruption and revenge.

Disney and 20th Century Studios’ “Avatar: Fire and Ash” rounded out the top five with $2.6 million, pushing its China cume to $157.9 million.

The weekend’s combined box office reached $29.5 million. China’s 2026 year-to-date total stands at $244.8 million, running 1% behind the same point in 2025. While the box office remains soft ahead of next month’s anticipated Lunar New Year holiday releases, next week sees Stanley Kubrick’s 1980 masterpiece “The Shining” release across China’s 750+ Imax screens for the first time.