Animation is a popular genre, and there are plenty of films that tend to dominate the discussion whenever animation is brought up. Spirited Away was recently named the greatest animated movie of the 21st century by The New York Times. Frozen and its sequel were massive hits for Disney and spawned a media franchise. Then, you have beloved series like Toy Story that defined the childhoods of several generations of kids.
But the most popular animated movie of all time isn’t actually any of them. It’s not an anime, or a Pixar movie, nor a Disney movie in general. No, it’s a movie called Ne Zha 2, and you’ve probably never heard of it or even seen it before in your life.
What Is Ne Zha 2?
For people in the West, it’s not surprising that they haven’t heard of Ne Zha 2 before. The film was released on January 29, 2025, in China and serves as a sequel to the 2019 original film, Ne Zha, and its impact in the West has been minimal, at best.
The original film is an adaptation of the Chinese novel Investiture of the Gods, which is itself a fictional retelling of the fall of the Shang Dynasty, the first recorded dynasty in Chinese history, and the rise of its successor, the Zhou Dynasty. While the novel is popular within China, its impact outside of China has been minor when compared to the Four Great Classical Novels, which include Romance of the Three Kingdoms and Journey to the West. Outside of some of the mythological characters that appear in the novel, like Ne Zha, Daji, and Jiang Ziya, most people in the West probably aren’t aware of the contents, or even the plot, of Investiture of the Gods.
Given that Investiture of the Gods is over 2,000 pages (depending on your translation), Ne Zha adapts only a portion of the book, specifically the portion detailing the birth of Ne Zha himself. In the film, Ne Zha was born from a powerful item called the Demon Orb. It was originally a part of the Chaos Pearl, but due to the Chaos Pearl’s overwhelming power, the gods split it into two halves: the Spirit Pearl and the Chaos Orb. Because of the demonic energy flowing within him, and in an effort to save him from a curse, Ne Zha’s parents tell him that he was actually born from the Spirit Pearl and needs to use his powers for good to protect those in need.
It’s a story that focuses a lot on the ideas of nature versus nurture. Is Ne Zha meant to become a monster solely because he was born with demonic power, or can he be taught to use that power for good and make himself into a hero? The sequel follows up on these ideas more, as well as putting more of a focus on the friendship between Ne Zha and his brother, Ao Bing. It also differs significantly from the original novel, instead focusing more on telling an original story within the same universe, making it more of an accessible sequel to the first film than another adaptation in what has now become an animated cinematic universe aimed at adapting Investiture of the Gods.
Is Ne Zha 2 Really That Popular?
Just from that brief introduction, it would be easy to think that both Ne Zha and Ne Zha 2 would be fairly popular hits within China, but nothing more. And to an extent, you would be right. The first film had a total gross of nearly $750 million in its run, which is a pretty sizeable profit no matter how you slice it. At the same time, its success is somewhat deflated when you consider that it was released in 2019, which was arguably the biggest year ever for the box office, with nine movies earning over a billion dollars. The box office was also a lot healthier back then, since the COVID-19 pandemic the following year would basically cause a widespread shift from theatrical releases to streaming platforms, making a success like Ne Zha notable, but not revelatory.
But it’s exactly because of that shift that Ne Zha 2’s success in 2025 is so noteworthy. Despite releasing in a much weaker cinematic landscape, Ne Zha 2 has grossed over 2.2 billion dollars so far in its theatrical run, making at least three times the original amount its predecessor did. It is quite literally the fifth highest-grossing movie of all time, within striking distance of both Titanic and Avatar: The Way of Water’s lifetime box office take, and easily sitting as the highest-grossing animated film of all time, surpassing the previous title holder, Inside Out 2, and its 1.7 billion dollar haul
To try and make sense of just how big of a hit Ne Zha 2 is in China, you’re going to have to consider a few facts about its release. First, the general critical reception of Ne Zha 2 was much stronger than the original film. General audiences in China praised its improved animation and how much more personal the story was, making it more of a hit with younger audience members. It was also released at the beginning of the Chinese New Year, which is one of the biggest holidays in China, so many families most likely used that time to go see it. Plus, the film didn’t really have any competition at the time, with the only major box office rival being Captain America: Brave New World, which didn’t exactly light the box office on fire and had negative word of mouth in China when compared to Ne Zha 2’s ongoing positivity.
Why Western Audiences (Probably) Haven't Heard Of Ne Zha 2
With a movie that’s made that much money and has amassed a loyal following in China, it’s fair to ask why nobody in the West has ever heard of Ne Zha 2 despite all of the acclaim. And the truthful and honest answer is that despite the power of the Chinese box office, that doesn’t exactly translate into Western success.
While Hollywood has been eager to penetrate the Chinese box office and rake in tons of money from them, Chinese films don’t often do well commercially outside of China. That isn’t always the case, as films like Crouching Tiger, Hidden Dragon have had successes in the West, but most films rarely, if ever, make their way from China to the United States. Sometimes they will get limited theatrical releases, like The Battle at Lake Changjin, but other times studios will be content to simply pick up the rights to make Western versions of those stories, like in the case of Hi, Mom.
Ne Zha 2 actually did get a limited theatrical release in the US back in February, where it earned a little over $20 million, but due to its status as a sequel to a film that only earned a little over $3.5 million back in 2019, it wasn’t the earth-shattering hit like it was in China. However, due to the huge cultural impact it left in its wake, Ne Zha 2 is being rereleased again in the United States, this time through A24 with an English dub that has Michelle Yeoh attached. So while you may not have heard of Ne Zha 2 before, you’ll probably hear a lot more about it sooner rather than later as it tries to make a push not only to further cement its status as the highest-grossing animated film of all time, but also the overall highest-grossing film of all time.
Where To Watch Ne Zha 2 Online
To discover more about TV shows and movies currently streaming in the US, check out the JustWatch streaming guide! You can filter your search by streaming service, genre, price, age rating, and score. Be sure to build your watchlist and receive helpful notifications on what to watch next based on your preferences!
