Spring Festival box office surpasses 4.4 billion yuan, "Pegasus 3" becomes the biggest winner

On February 21, according to Maoyan Professional Edition data, China’s film market grossed over $970 million in 2026, surpassing North America’s $938 million, temporarily ranking first globally among single markets.

This achievement is attributed to the strong performance during the Spring Festival period. The 2026 Spring Festival (February 15–23) lasted 9 days, setting a record for the longest ever. According to statistics, the total screenings during this period exceeded 3.947 million shows, breaking the record for Spring Festival screenings in Chinese film history.

Data from Maoyan Professional Edition shows that the total box office (including pre-sales) during the 2026 Spring Festival period has exceeded 4.4 billion yuan. “Flying Past Life 3,” “Silent Chilling,” and “Dartman: Winds Rise in the Desert” rank as the top three, with a clear “one super, many strong” box office structure. Multiple agencies predict that the total box office for this Spring Festival could reach between 6.5 billion and 8.5 billion yuan.

As of 6 p.m. on February 21, “Flying Past Life 3” led the box office with over 2.2 billion yuan, with an absolute advantage, and a total viewership of 77.57 million. The audience rating is 9.6, making it the first film this Spring Festival to cross the 2 billion yuan mark. Additionally, “Silent Chilling” and “Dartman: Winds Rise in the Desert” have also surpassed 600 million and 500 million yuan respectively.

According to CCTV News, the predicted box office for “Flying Past Life 3” is 4.275 billion yuan. Previously, Maoyan data showed that “Flying Past Life” was released during the 2019 Spring Festival, with a final box office of 1.728 billion yuan, ranking third among Spring Festival films in 2019; “Flying Past Life 2” was released during the 2024 Spring Festival, earning 3.361 billion yuan, ranking second that year.

As “Flying Past Life 3” continues to perform strongly, lead actor Shen Teng’s total starring box office has surpassed 38.9 billion yuan, topping the domestic actor box office rankings. It is reported that five films starring Shen Teng have each grossed over 3 billion yuan, including “Hello, Li Huanying” (5.413 billion), “Man Jiang Hong” (4.544 billion), “Flying Past Life 2” (3.361 billion), “Claw Doll” (3.327 billion), and “Moon Man” (3.103 billion).

Notably, several A-share listed companies participated in the production or distribution of Spring Festival films. Among them, only “Flying Past Life 3” involved Chinese film, Wanda Film, Bona Film, Hengdian Film and TV, and other listed companies; “Silent Chilling” involved companies such as China Film, Enlight Media, Shanghai Film, and Wanda Film.

Furthermore, industry data shows that over 53.72% of the box office during this year’s Spring Festival came from third- and fourth-tier cities, setting a new record for Spring Festival periods and indicating that the sinking market has become a key driver of China’s film market growth. According to a recent report from China International Capital Corporation, the distribution of moviegoers by city tier during the Spring Festival is generally more lower-tier, with the proportion of third-tier and below increasing from about 47% in 2015 to around 59% in 2025.

In addition to the Spring Festival boost, China’s film box office ranking first globally is no coincidence. At the start of 2026, the Chinese film market showed a strong “off-season not off” trend, with total box office surpassing 1 billion yuan in early January.

(Source: Jiemian News)