“Volunteers: Peace at Last” posted a modest 34.9 million renminbi (about $480 million) at the Chinese box office from October 10 to 12, according to consultancy Artisan Gateway.
The film commemorates the entry of the Chinese People’s Volunteer Army into the Korean War, stars Wu Jing and Zhang Ziyi, and is the third chapter in director Chen Kaige’s “Volunteer Army” trilogy. The China Film Group title has grossed $73.1 million since its release. It was released during China’s National Day holiday week, but collections during this period were not as active as in previous years.
“Row to Win” rose from No. 5 to No. 2 with $3.7 million, and its peak rose to $37.9 million. This comedy-drama from PMF Pictures, directed by Ma Lin and starring Fang Bo, Fang Chengcheng, Ying Tao, and Li Jia-chi, follows a family in a coastal town led by a once-strong patriarch who band together during difficult times to rebuild their lives.
“A Writer’s Odyssey 2” remained in third place with $3.5 million, bringing its total to $45.4 million. Produced by Huace Pictures, the sequel to director Lu Yan’s 2021 fantasy-action blockbuster continues the meta-story where fiction and reality intertwine, with Lei Jiaying reprising her role alongside Dong Zijiang and Yang Mi.
In fourth place was Lian Ray Pictures’ The Sound of Silence, which earned $3.1 million for a total of $28.1 million. Directed by Wang Li, the crime drama stars Tan Jianxi, along with Lan Siya, Wang Ge, Wang Yanhui, Qi Peng, and Pan Binglong, as a lawyer for a deaf family who takes on a large-scale fraud case affecting the deaf community.
Changying Film Group’s “Evil Unbound” rounded out the top five with $2.4 million, bringing its total to $262.2 million. Directed by Lingxiang Chao, this World War II drama centers on the germ warfare plans of Japan’s Unit 731.
The weekend box office revenue totaled $23 million, and China’s cumulative box office revenue for 2025 reached $6.109 billion, an increase of 18.9% year-on-year.
