superheroes descended on Beijing this week to take on a new battlefield: China’s box office.
Chris Evans, the lead actor in “Captain America: The Winter Soldier,” and Andrew Garfield, the star of “The Amazing Spider-Man 2” were promoting their latest films in China, a destination that is increasingly being added to stars’ promotional tour itineraries.
Mr. Evans and co-star Scarlett Johansson visited an upscale shopping center in downtown Beijing on Monday for the film’s only promotional stop in Asia, while Mr. Garfield met local fans and media in a luxury hotel in central Beijing along with co-star Emma Stone on Tuesday.
China hasn’t always been a favored stop on celebrities’ world tours. But since the country became the world’s second-largest film market in 2012, Hollywood’s stars are paying it more attention, especially those promoting blockbuster superhero films loaded with 3-D and special effects . Robert Downey Jr. visited Beijing to promote “Iron Man 3” last spring, and Tom Hiddleston stopped by in October ahead of the release of “Thor: The Dark World.”
Though it’s hard to say for certain whether the stars’ appearances make a difference, the trips do seem to be helping. “Iron Man 3” was China’s second highest-grossing film last year, raking in 755.2 million yuan ($121.6 million), while China was “Thor’s” top overseas market, bringing in $55.3 million, according to Box Office Mojo.
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“Hollywood pays attention to where business is growing,” said Matthew Tolmach, co-producer of “The Amazing Spider-Man 2” and former production chief at Columbia Pictures. “It is a big market and there’s a lot money to be made with a Chinese release.”
He also said it’s important for stars to come and interact with their Chinese fans.
“The value of coming to a territory and sitting with people who actually work and live there is actually about showing respect,” he said. “We don’t just assume that people in China are going to come to the movie. We come to you to tell you why we think it is great.”
China was the top overseas market for the first installment of “The Amazing Spider-Man” when it was released in September 2012, bringing in more than $48.8 million, according to Box Office Mojo.
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“It is the right time,” said Avi Arad, co-producer of “The Amazing Spider-Man 2” and former chairman and CEO of Marvel Studios who is also working on a new superhero movie about China’s Terra-Cotta Warriors with Beijing-based Seven Stars Film Studios. “We would be idiots not to come and make sure we are part of it.”
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But big-name Hollywood actors and mind-blowing special effects don’t always guarantee a big win for Hollywood movies in Chinese theaters. Last year, authorities pulled Quentin Tarantino’s “Django Unchained” from movie screens, just moments after the film was released. Speculation spread rapidly online that concerns over scenes featuring nudity might have been the culprit. The China Film Group said the film was pulled due to a “technical reason.”
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“Captain America” premiers in Chinese theaters on April 4 while “Spider-Man 2” debuts May 4—both at the same the movies are released in the U.S.
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