The director of China’s biggest blockbuster said on Sunday he was “totally surprised” with the success his film, Monster Hunt, while its sequel broke records on its opening day in China.
Monster Hunt, a fantasy epic about an ancient Chinese town where monsters and humans live side by side, became China’s biggest grossing film of all time in 2015, making a record $380 million in the box office.
Its sequel, Monster Hunt 2 was released on February 16, coinciding with the Lunar New Year holidays, taking $85 million, the biggest single-day performance in Chinese box office history.
Starring Asian A-listers Tony Leung Chiu-wai and Bai Baihe, the film follows the journey of a young couple in search of their son Wuba, a friendly monster baby capable of bringing eternal peace between humans and monsters.
Releasing the sequel at Berlin Film Festival, director Raman Hui said he hoped the film’s universal theme would also help it succeed internationally.
“The core of the story is about love and family. Even though we have a different culture and different customs, we share the same values,” Hui told Reuters TV.
Hui said his film was timely because it was about tolerance and acceptance where humans and monsters could live together.
“Even a kid in Berlin, if he sees this film, can understand it,” he said.
