Batman returns

The caped crusader swoops into the Chinese market to give domestic theaters a welcome boost amid ongoing challenges caused by the pandemic, Xu Fan reports.

Amid the country's ongoing COVID-19 resurgence, more than half of China's cinemas have been closed since last week. But in its latest cinematic reboot, Batman, one of the most iconic American comic book heroes, has found a way to captivate Chinese audiences.

As of Thursday, the movie, which was released domestically on March 18, had grossed around 120 million yuan ($18.9 million), usurping Tom Holland's adventure epic Uncharted to grab the top spot in the country's box-office rankings in its opening week.

Currently earning a score of 7.6 points out of 10 on the review-aggregation site Douban, The Batman, aside from being a dark avenger, has become a sort of "rescuer", giving a boost－albeit not as big as industry insiders had hoped－to a sluggish market that is struggling from a shortage of blockbusters and the effects of regional theater closures due to the pandemic.