Chinese Modern Year Box Office Heats Up with ‘Pegasus’ and More
The 2026 Chinese New Year film slate is already proving to be a major draw, with pre-sale tickets exceeding 53 million yuan (approximately $7.3 million USD) as of February 9, according to reports. Leading the charge is “Pegasus,” the third installment in the popular racing franchise, which has already secured 18.379 million yuan in pre-sale revenue.
Wanada Film announced that it is involved in several films slated for release during the holiday period, including “Pegasus 3,” “Silent Intrusion,” “Boonie Bears: New Year’s Eve,” and a co-production titled “Bandits.” The studio encouraged audiences to visit Wanada cinemas to catch the new releases. This announcement comes as the Chinese New Year holiday is known for being a peak season for domestic film releases.
“Pegasus 3,” directed by Han Han and starring Shen Teng, was the first film to officially set a release date for the 2026 holiday. The film is a production of Shanghai Tingdong Film, Tianjin Maoyan Culture Media, Damai Entertainment (Beijing), Beijing Bona Film Group, China Film Industry Group, Zhejiang Happy Maverick Pictures, Wanda Film Media and Zhejiang Horndien Film. The previous films in the series, “Pegasus” (2019) and “Pegasus 2” (2024), were also released during the Chinese New Year holiday, earning 1.728 billion yuan and 3.361 billion yuan at the box office, respectively.
Other films expected to perform well during the holiday include “Silent Intrusion” and “Bandits: Wind in the Desert,” which rank second and third in pre-sale ticket sales. The 2026 Chinese New Year holiday is set to be the longest in history, potentially boosting box office numbers even further.
