‘Gravity’ Could Ace Out ‘Hunger Games,’ ‘Ender’s Game’ With China Release Date

Alfonso Cuaron space odyssey will be one of the last U.S. films to premiere in China this year

“Gravity” will touch down in China on Nov. 20, a spokesman for Warner Bros. told TheWrap.

Alfonso Cuaron’s 3D space drama has been cleared by the country’s film board and will be one of the last U.S. films assured release in China this year.

That means that several big-budget releases like “Ender’s Game,” “Thor: The Dark World” and “The Hunger Games: Catching Fire” may have to settle for debuting in the People’s Republic in 2014.

Also read: George Clooney: ‘Gravity’ Is an Argument for 3D

China only allows 34 foreign films to screen in its borders annually and favors pictures that can be shown in 3D and IMAX. “Gravity” has proven to be extraordinarily popular in both respects in the U.S., with 80 percent of its opening weekend box office coming from 3D screenings and 20 percent of the movie’s domestic total coming from IMAX.

Getting into China, which last year surpassed Japan as the world’s second largest market for movie ticket sales, can add tens of millions of dollars to a film’s bottom line.

So far “Gravity,” which cost $80 million to make, has taken in more than $200 million worldwide.

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