16 | Tuesday, November 24, 2020 HONG KONG EDITION | CHINA DAILY LIFE New Wonder Woman film set in Cold War era out in December

LOS ANGELES — The upcoming “It wasn’t an easy decision and we Hollywood film Wonder Woman never thought we’d have to hold 1984 will debut both online and in onto the release for such a long theaters in the United States next time, but COVID rocked all of our month, Warner Bros Pictures worlds. We feel the movie has never announced on Wednesday. been so relevant and we hope that The highly anticipated superhero it’ll bring some joy, hope and love to Action crime film Caught in Time, starring Wang Qianyuan (left) and Daniel Wu, currently tops the country’s box office. film will be released simultaneously your hearts.” in theaters and on HBO Max on Dec Jenkins also wrote on Twitter, “I 25. It will be available on the can’t wait for the world to see this streaming service for a month at no amazing woman on the screen. additional cost to subscribers, the She’ll blow your mind and warm Hollywood studio says in a state­ your heart.” ment. The film was originally scheduled “As we navigate these unprece­ to hit big screens in the summer, but dented times, we’ve had to be inno­ was postponed multiple times due Criminal pursuits vative in keeping our businesses to the COVID­19 pandemic. moving forward while continuing As a number of major Hollywood Crime thriller is of 205 million yuan ($31.2 million), faced greater challenges in solving wracking scene occurs in a public to super­serve our fans,” says Ann films have been delayed or moved usurping war blockbuster The Sacri­ crimes than they do today. bath. Forced to flee to his hometown Sarnoff, chairwoman and CEO of online amid the COVID­19 surge, lifting China’s box fice from top spot of the country’s Set in southern China between after all of his gangsters and his mis­ WarnerMedia Studios and Net­ Wonder Woman 1984 is widely box­office charts. Helmed by script­ 1991 and 1994, the film follows tress have been killed or captured, works Group, which encompasses seen as providing hope for US thea­ office after a writer­turned­director Lau Ho­leung, Wang’s police captain who, alongside Wu’s character struggles during the Warner Bros Pictures. ters that have been devastated by post­holiday known for Painted Skin and Kung Fu his fellow officers, sets out to face off last and most violent standoff against “This is an amazing film that real­ the pandemic. Jungle, the film brings A­list actors against ruthless gangsters who use Wang’s police captain. ly comes to life on the big screen Wonder Woman 1984 will debut slump, Wang Qianyuan and Daniel Wu illegally purchased guns to rob banks For a scene that features both char­ and, working with our partners in theatrically in international mar­ together for the first time in their and stores, causing the deaths of doz­ acters half­naked, wrapped in bath the exhibition community, we will kets a week earlier than the US, Xu Fan reports. respective 20­year careers. ens of police officers and civilians in towels, the two actors trained for provide that option to consumers in starting on Dec 16, according to After a best­actor win at the Tokyo the process. Meanwhile, Wu is no nearly 40 days to sharpen their the US where theaters are open. We Warner Bros Pictures. rime thrillers — among International Film Festival for The stranger to playing the villain, with moves for the stunts and stuck to a realize that a lot of consumers can’t International markets are grow­ world cinema’s most endur­ Piano in a Factory in 2011, Wang some of his best­known baddies tak­ diet of mostly chicken breast to go back to the movies due to the ing even more important economi­ ing genres — continue to starred in several crime blockbusters ing on Jackie Chan in New Police Sto­ increase their muscle mass. pandemic, so we also want to give cally for Hollywood as only half of captivate countless audien­ such as Saving Mr Wu (2015) and ry (2004) and Shinjuku Incident As a result, while shooting Caught them the option to see Wonder US theaters have been reopened. Cces thanks to their suspense­laden Peace Breaker (2017), impressing (2009). For this latest outing he has in Time in Jiangmen, South China’s Woman 1984 via our HBO Max Another Warner Bros tentpole themes and cat­and­mouse plots. domestic audiences as a silver screen shaved his eyebrows and kept to a Guangdong province, between late platform,” Sarnoff adds. film, Christopher Nolan’s Tenet, also Caught in Time provides the gen­ tough guy. “Most of my previous strict diet for the role. 2018 and early 2019, the location The upcoming film is a sequel to debuted internationally a week re’s first major Chinese release in police and crime films are set closer In an earlier interview with domes­ Wang and Wu “bumped into each Wonder Woman, a massive critical before its US premiere earlier this 2020, highlighting the efforts of law to present day, but Caught in Time is tic media outlets, Wu says his charac­ other” the most was not the film set, and commercial hit in 2017, which year and grossed more than $353 enforcement to crack down on a story that takes place more than 20 ter in this film, Zhang Sun — depicted but at the local gym. In order to build grossed $822 million at the global million worldwide, with only $56.3 crimes in China in the 1990s. The film years ago, giving me a new experience as a Cantonese­speaking, hippie­like an atmosphere, the pair gathered fel­ box office, including around $90 million from the North American is currently lifting the nation’s box to learn how the police worked in that hooligan — has a complex personali­ low actors who were playing cops or million from the Chinese mainland. market. office out of its post­National Day hol­ period,” Wang said during an inter­ ty. “I think he (the character) is not a gangsters and intentionally “split” With director Patty Jenkins back The Chinese mainland was one of iday slump. view at the film’s Beijing premiere on common bandit. He has a sharp them into two groups while training. at the helm and Gal Gadot return­ the biggest theatrical territories for Inspired by the hunting down of Nov 16. mind, enabling him to quickly discov­ Some advanced screenings were ing in the title role, Wonder Woman the film, raking in 456 million yuan several notorious armed gangsters “Acting is an interesting job. One of er holes in the security system of held in mid­November, with most 1984 follows Diana Prince as she ($69.5 million) after more than two who were involved in numerous rob­ its biggest charms is that it always banks or stores. He takes robbery critics hailing the film as a successful battles two formidable foes during months, according to box­office beries and murders in the 1990s, and helps you to experience a different somewhat more as a profession than mix of a typical Hong Kong gangster the Cold War. “We’ve all waited a data compiled by Maoyan, a Chi­ the brave police officers involved in life, making every movie like the start just stealing money, so he even tries to film and mainland real­life cases. long time for this one to come. I nese movie­ticketing and film data bringing them to justice, the movie, of a new career,” he adds. seek an honorable way to die when he can’t tell you how excited I am for all platform. which hit domestic theaters on Fri­ Due to the limitations in forensic realizes he has nowhere to escape.” Contact the writer at of you to see this movie,” tweeted day, has already notched up takings technology back then, Chinese police Near the end, the most nerve­ [email protected] Gadot on Wednesday. XINHUA