'Zootopia 2' races past $400 million mark in China; trails behind 'Avengers: Endgame' as second-highest-earning Hollywood release

The buddy-cop film 'Zootopia 2' is showing no signs of slowing down at the Chinese box office. The animated sequel to the 2016 hit film, delivered a massive $116 million in its second weekend, pushing its 12-day total to an impressive $431 million.With this, the film has become only the second Hollywood release in history to cross the $400 million mark in China. The last film to hit this milestone was the Marvel superhero film , 'Avengers: Endgame', which retains the box office throne with an all-time collection of $632 million.'Zootopia 2' overtook 'The Fate of the Furious' ($393 million) on Saturday to claim this spot. With its unstoppable momentum, analysts predict the film could hit $500 million by next weekend, dramatically narrowing the gap with Endgame.However, the film will face added competition at the box office with the release of 'Avatar: Fire and Ash' that is slated to release the following weekend, on December 19. 'Zootopia 2' has also been faring well at the global box office with the film eyeing the $1 billion mark. According to the latest reports, the animated film added $43 million in North America this past weekend and with a total of $219 million from 52 territories internationally, including China, the running global total is an eye-popping $915.8 million. With still weeks to go before the film bows out of theatres, it remains to be seen if it can make it past the Billion dollar mark. If it does manage to hit the milestone, it will follow in the footsteps of 'Zootopia', which previously grossed $341.3 million in the US and Canada and $682.5 million in other countries for a worldwide total of $1.024 billion, against a budget of $150 million.As a franchise, 'Zootopia' currently has a total box office earning of an estimated $1.94 billion.According to sacnilk, the sequel’s remarkable performance is reportedly being driven by nostalgia for the original 2016 blockbuster and with families showing up in large numbers over the weekends. The film has posted unusually small weekday drops, turning its second-week run into an impressive benchmark for animated releases.Adding to the frenzy, theatres across China have launched pet-friendly screenings of the film, allowing audiences to bring their dogs to watch the film alongside them. Photos and videos of dogs seated in cinema chairs next to their owners quickly went viral online, sending pet-parents into a cute meltdown. Whether 'Zootopia 2' can dethrone 'Avengers: Endgame' remains uncertain, considering that the film will be back in cinemas next year, for a re-release. This screening will come ahead of the release of the next big 'Avengers' movie 'Avengers: Doomsday'. The film is rumoured to feature new footage that will likely link the film to the latest instalment that will see Robert Downey Jr return to the MCU, this time, as the villain, Doctor Victor Von Doom.