Why 'Warcraft 2' May Never Play in US Theaters

Normally, a movie with a $160 million production budget that makes $47 million at the domestic box office doesn’t get a sequel. But June’s “Warcraft” was not a normal movie, and its likely sequel won’t be, either.

In fact, it could be the first English-language movie from an American production company that will get a theatrical release in China and not the U.S. And as China’s box office continues to become more significant, “Warcraft 2” — or whatever the next installment is called — could provide a blueprint for other movies to follow.

Legendary Entertainment’s fantasy epic based on the “World of Warcraft” video game series starred American actors such as Paula Patton and Ben Foster. But the movie’s dominant international box office — it made $220.8 million in China and set a record for the biggest disparity between domestic and foreign receipts — means that “Warcraft 2” might draw its talent elsewhere. And given “Warcraft’s” weak performance at home, it may not even play in American theaters at all.

Also Read: Why 'Warcraft' Can Bomb in US This Weekend and Still Be a Blockbuster

“Who says it needs to have American actors?” Sky Moore, a partner at Stroock & Stroock & Lavan who’s worked on several U.S.-China co-production deals, told TheWrap. “I would suspect that the sequel would be more China-centric. It’s very possible it wouldn’t be released here.”

“Warcraft” isn’t exclusively a China success story — the movie made $22.5 million in Russia and $15.7 million in Germany, two other strong video game markets — but the Chinese box office is basically why “Warcraft” even made sense as a movie. It hit a substantial $6.8 billion last year, meaning that movies that wouldn’t have made sense before might make sense now.

Warner Bros.’ 2013 sci-fi monster flick “Pacific Rim” made $111.9 million in China — $10 million more than it did in the U.S. — on a $190 million budget.

Even though Chinese theatrical splits are among the least favorable of any foreign territory — Hollywood studios only get 25 percent of the box office gross for revenue-sharing films, 34 of which are allowed in each year — the top-line number has grown large enough to where the Chinese market by itself can now swing the balance on whether a movie will be made or not.

Also Read: 'Warcraft' Reviews: It 'Doesn't Suck' and 6 Other Much Worse Critical Reactions

And as China’s box office continues to grow — despite a summer slump this year, it could pass the U.S. as the world’s largest as soon as 2017 — Moore said that could lead to sequels of movies that connected a lot more with Chinese than American audiences being produced for that market.

“I’d expect more remakes in China of movies that did well there and not-so-well here,” Moore said. “It’s a big enough market.”

China has become a massive movie market, but it has a remarkable lack of diversity as far as the movies that actually do well there. Looking at the films that have earned more than $100 million at the Chinese box office, it’s basically fantasy, sci-fi, loud action movies and the Marvel Cinematic Universe.

Also Read: 'Warcraft' Movie Is Openly Hostile to Non-Nerds (Commentary)

“Warcraft” not only fits in with that theme, but it had some other China-specific advantages that made it a massive hit there and a flop at home.

The film’s production company, Legendary, was acquired by China’s Dalian Wanda Group in January, and Wanda — also China’s largest movie theater operator — helped put the film on a higher percentage of the country’s screens than “Furious 7,” China’s all-time highest-grossing Hollywood film.

Also, media and entertainment conglomerate Tencent, owner of China’s most popular social media app, WeChat, was one of the film’s marketing partners, and Tencent gave the film a massive marketing push, helping it fill theaters in third- and fourth-tier cities. In addition, China is estimated to be home to about half the world’s “World of Warcraft” players, giving the movie a built-in fanbase.

Also Read: 'Warcraft' Review: Swords, Sorcery and Stupidity Abound in Game Adaptation

But just because a game is popular somewhere doesn’t necessarily mean that a movie version will automatically work. Terence Fung, the chief strategy officer of game company Storm8, said game and film fanboys (“Warcraft” had an overwhelmingly male audience) are not going to support a substandard branded product just because it’s affiliated with a game or comic book hero they love.

“Both the film and the game have to be true to the intellectual property,” he told TheWrap. “It has to make sense.”

What may make sense for Hollywood going forward is to think differently in distributing the type of big-budget, often poorly reviewed fantasy epics that the younger-skewing Chinese film audience can’t get enough of. It took $20 to see “Warcraft” in an American theater. It might take a passport and a plane ticket to China to see the follow-up.

Hollywood's 22 Biggest Box Office Champs in China (Photos)

Chinese moviegoers love to spend their hard-earned yuan on Hollywood blockbusters like "Captain America: Civil War," "Avatar" and "Star Wars: The Force Awakens." Comedies and dramas? Not so much. Read on to see which American hits have raked in the most money (according to BoxOfficeMojo) in that nation across the Pacific.
Disney/Marvel/Lucasfilm/Fox
"Furious 7" (2015)

$390.9 million

The Vin Diesel and Dwayne Johnson revved-up action flick is easily the highest-grossing Hollywood movie ever in China. The late Paul Walker remains among China's most beloved American actors.
Universal
"Transformers: Age of Extinction" (2014)

$320 million

Mark Wahlberg starred in the sci-fi movie based on the foldable toys, which was co-produced by two Chinese firms and was the first Hollywood movie to make more than $300 million in the Middle Kingdom.
Paramount
"Avengers: Age of Ultron" (2015)

$240.1 million

The superhero mashup is China's highest-grossing Marvel Cinematic Universe film, a franchise that's been embraced by the country's young-leaning moviegoers.
Marvel
"Zootopia" (2016)

$235.6 million

The buddy-cop comedy is the highest-grossing imported animated film in the history of the Chinese box office, and it played especially well in China's second- and third-tier cities.
Disney
"Jurassic World" (2015)

$228.7 million

Like "Furious 7," the dinosaur sci-fi adventure was produced by Legendary Entertainment, which was acquired by China's Dalian Wanda Group in January.
Universal
"Warcraft" (2016)

$220.8 million

Another Legendary film, this one inspired by a video game series, flopped in the U.S. but dominated the Chinese market, which is home to about half of the video game's players worldwide.
Universal
"Avatar" (2009)

$204.1 million

The worldwide smash hit also captivated Chinese audiences, even back in 2009, when the country's box office was a fraction of the size that it is today.
Fox
"Captain America: Civil War" (2016)

$190.4 million

The latest film in the Marvel Cinematic Universe -- with an ensemble cast that includes Robert Downey Jr., Chris Evans, Scarlett Johansson and Don Cheadle -- continued the iconic comic book company's momentum in China.
Marvel
"Transformers: Dark of the Moon" (2011)

$165.1 million

The prequel to this film, 2009's "Transformers: Revenge of the Fallen," made $65.8 million in China, setting the stage for "Dark of the Moon" to be the country's highest-grossing Hollywood film since "Avatar" at the time.
Paramount
"Kung Fu Panda 3" (2016)

$154.3 million

The Mandarin-language version of the movie starring Jack Black as a friendly fighting bear had the characters reanimated so their mouths moved naturally with the translated words.
DreamWorks
"The Jungle Book" (2016)

$150.1 million

The live-action/animation hybrid was a hit in several international markets, especially India, and it also played well throughout China.
Disney
"Mission: Impossible - Rogue Nation" (2015)

$135.7 million

China's Alibaba Pictures invested in "Rogue Nation," and star Tom Cruise visited several Chinese cities to promote the film, helping it open strong and stick around in theaters even though its China debut came more than a month after its U.S. premiere.
Paramount
"Star Wars: The Force Awakens" (2016)

$124.2 million

Despite China being one of the few markets that didn't catch "Star Wars" fever -- the movie put some people there to sleep -- Disney's promotional efforts helped it clear $100 million.
Lucasfilm
"Interstellar" (2014)

$122 million

The epic space adventure starring Matthew McConaughey, Anne Hathaway and Jessica Chastain connected with Chinese audiences, even though it wasn't in the 3D format that crowds there have grown used to.

Paramount
"The Hobbit: The Battle of the Five Armies" (2014)

$121.7 million

The third and final installment in Peter Jackson's "Hobbit" series was another movie that succeeded even though it was released in China well after its U.S. premiere.
Warner Bros.
"Iron Man 3" (2013)

$121.2 million

All three movies in the Robert Downey Jr. franchise have played in China, helping build brand awareness beyond just the bankable Marvel name.
Marvel
"X-Men: Apocalypse" (2016)

$12o.8 million

Disney bought Marvel Entertainment in 2009, but Fox acquired the film rights to Marvel's "X-Men" franchise before then. It doesn't seem to matter much in China, where anything Marvel often turns into a big hit.
Fox
"Captain America: The Winter Soldier" (2014)

$115.6 million

The predecessor to this year's "Civil War," "Winter Soldier" was a hit despite its fairly political content, which is usually a negative in Chinese theaters.
Marvel
"Terminator Genisys" (2015)

$113.2 million

The fifth "Terminator" film was the franchise's lowest-grossing since the 1984 original, but it was the first in the series to get a Chinese theatrical release.
Paramount
"Pacific Rim" (2013)

$111.9 million

The futuristic sci-fi adventure, in which humans battle sea monsters, is yet another fantasy action movie that Chinese audiences loved.
Warner Bros.
"Ant-Man" (2015)

$105.4 million

Yet another Marvel Cinematic Universe movie, "Ant-Man" made just $180.2 million at the domestic box office but was a much bigger hit in China.
Marvel
"San Andreas" (2015)

$103.2 million

China knows Dwayne Johnson from the "Fast and Furious" franchise, and the earthquake disaster film he headlined last year reverberated at the Chinese box office.
Warner Bros.

1 of 23

Chinese moviegoers can’t get enough of America’s big-budget action flicks

Chinese moviegoers love to spend their hard-earned yuan on Hollywood blockbusters like "Captain America: Civil War," "Avatar" and "Star Wars: The Force Awakens." Comedies and dramas? Not so much. Read on to see which American hits have raked in the most money (according to BoxOfficeMojo) in that nation across the Pacific.

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Hollywood's 22 Biggest Box Office Champs in China (Photos)

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