Lionsgate and Beijing-based film company Leomus Pictures are set to co-produce a Chinese-language spinoff of magician thriller franchise Now You See Me. The movie is being developed as an official U.S.-China co-production. It will be shot in China and feature a mostly Chinese cast.
“We’re working closely with Lionsgate on the story,” Leomus Pictures CEO Jie Qiu said in an quote to THR. “And a Hollywood writer will be involved to make sure the spinoff is aligned with the Now You See Me franchise and has the same level of quality.”
In June, Now You See Me 2 debuted to $43.3 million in China, Lionsgate’s biggest opening weekend ever in the country — and nearly double its bow in North America ($23 million). The sequel went head-to-head in China with Fox’s Independence Day: Resurgence, which had nearly double the production budget. After three weeks on Chinese screens, Now You See Me 2 has earned $94.5 million, compared with Resurgence’s $74.7 million. In North America, the Lionsgate film topped out at $63.7 million.
Leomus Pictures is a partner with Hunan TV in the Chinese broadcaster’s $375 million slate financing deal with Lionsgate, which began last year.
