China's 2026 Box Office Crossed ¥30 Billion — and “Movie Plus” Is the Bigger Story

The milestone

On October 3, China's 2026 annual box office, including presales, passed RMB 30 billion. The same report put total admissions at 763 million and screenings at 112 million. Those are market-wide figures, so they describe the scale of the year rather than the performance of any single movie.

A broad lineup, not one title

The report said the current top five annual earners were all Chinese productions, while the National Day holiday lineup mixed suspense, comedy, romance, and animation. That mix matters because the current conversation is not only “which film won?” but also “what kind of movie outing makes people leave home during a long holiday?”

What “movie plus” means

“电影+,” or “movie plus,” is a loose shorthand for extending cinema beyond the screening itself. Examples reported during the holiday include IMAX and CINITY special-format rooms, cinemas with bookstores, wellness spaces, or esports areas, and ticket stubs that unlock discounts at nearby bookshops. Some cultural venues are also pairing films with collections and period displays. These are examples, not a claim that every cinema offers all of them.

Why the phrase is useful

The phrase captures a shift in how Chinese audiences talk about moviegoing: a ticket can be the start of an outing that includes books, leisure, shopping, or a themed experience. The ¥30 billion milestone supplies the headline, but “movie plus” explains the more everyday question behind it — how cinemas are trying to make a visit feel like a complete event.