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Reuters

Nancy Wang

Chinese social media reacted positively to yesterday’s announcement that there will be an English version of the globally successful Chinese animated film Ne Zha 2, to be released in North America, Australia and New Zealand later this year.
Oscar-winning actress Michelle Yeoh will be voicing one of the characters.
“We’re looking forward to seeing Zha er [as Ne zha is affectionately known in the Chinese online community] speaking English on the screen,” said one Weibo user.
“Zha er secretly practised his English during the summer vacation without telling us,” quipped another.

A24 and CMC Pictures are teaming up to bring the English-language version to cinemas on August 22.
In February, Ne Zha 2 overtook Pixar’s Inside Out 2 to become the highest-grossing animated film globally, according to data from ticketing platform Maoyan.
Ne Zha 2 amassed a total box office of 12.3 billion yuan (US$1.71 billion) including presales and overseas earnings, making it the eighth highest box office film worldwide.
Other than Yeoh, no other voice actors from the English-language cast have been announced so far.
“I’m honoured to be part of Ne Zha 2, a landmark in Chinese animation and a powerful reminder of how universal our stories can be,” Yeoh said.

Chinese internet users have already started to guess who the veteran action star will be voicing in the English version.
“Is she dubbing the role of Ne Zha’s mother?” one Weibo user asked.
“Most likely Ne Zha’s mother, since among the female characters, only Ne Zha’s mom has the most scenes,” said another.
“Why can’t it be the west sea dragon king Ao Run [one of the villains], she’s so domineering!” one user suggested.
The sequel film follows the first Ne Zha film from 2019 and is based on Chinese mythology.
The story follows Ne Zha, a rebellious young boy, who is feared by the gods and born to mortal parents with wild, uncontrolled powers.

He is faced with an ancient force intent on destroying humanity and must grow up to become the hero the world needs.
The film, which will be released in IMAX and 3D, was written and directed by filmmaker Yang Yu, who also developed the first film.
Over 99 per cent of the original film’s box-office income came from mainland China, a stark contrast to Hollywood films, which typically rely on a more global distribution strategy.
Ne Zha 2 is based on the 16th-century Chinese novel The Investiture of the Gods, depicting a boy with magical powers who tried to defend Chentangguan, a fortress town.
Some Chinese online users are curious as to how the highly popular character Taiyi Zhenren, who delivers punchlines with a fluent Sichuan accent in the Chinese version, will sound in the dubbed version.
“This is a great opportunity [to export] Chinese culture, allowing more people outside China to appreciate it,” one Weibo user commented.
Additional reporting by Nancy Wang


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Chinese internet users are generally positive over the announcement, with many trying to guess which character Michelle Yeoh will voice


Chinese internet users are generally positive over the announcement, with many trying to guess which character Michelle Yeoh will voice.


Michelle Yeoh

Pixar

Chinese social media reacts to news of Ne Zha 2’s English version

.css-1c6uqr6{color:inherit;font-weight:inherit;font-size:inherit;font-family:inherit;line-height:inherit;overflow-wrap:break-word;}Chinese internet users are generally positive over the announcement, with many trying to guess which character Michelle Yeoh will voice

Chinese internet users are generally positive over the announcement, with many trying to guess which character Michelle Yeoh will voice