"Transformers: Age of Extinction" Sells Better in China and Better than the Previous Installment

The movie, "Transformers: Age of Extinction", has been selling quite a lot in Asia, particularly in China. According to the China Movie Media Group, The film is a bigger hit in the country compared to the United States.

As of now, the film already grossed $145M in the people's republic within five days after it was released compared with the $121 made domestically in a span of five days. The film brought in $10.5 million Stateside on Monday and $10.4 million on Tuesday, so it's not that clear if it will match those figures after tallying the sales each day.

Additionally, the film has now broken the record set by a China-Hong Kong production, "The Monkey King," which grossed $133 million over 11 days, and it has done everything half of its time.

China Movie Media Group said "Transformers: Age of Extinction" is currently attempting to surpass "Avatar's" success, which grossed $217.7 million from the country.

It's almost unheard of for a Hollywood film of this size and scale to surpass its Stateside gross in a foreign land, especially on a highly protectionist market like China, which often all the necessary steps in order to safeguard its local productions by giving foreign films unpalatable release slots.

However, Paramount Pictures, the studio behind the franchise, has taken great risks to incorporate Chinese elements into the film - shooting parts of the picture there, casting Chinese star Li Bingbing in a key role and partnering with local companies in order to help promote the film.

China Movie Media Group, the country's largest distributor and film promoter, collaborated for the first time with a U.S. studio, providing ad, online ticketing and other forms of support.

As for the records, the previous "Transformers" film sold roughly $165 million in China. Paramount Pictures should be expecting sales from the fourth installment three or four times the amount perhaps in the next couple of weeks.