The fourth installment in China’s wildly popular Detective Chinatown action comedy franchise has locked down day-and-date theatrical release plans in North America, Europe and Southeast Asia. The highly anticipated feature will open around the world Jan. 29, the same date it unfurls at home in China on the first day of the lucrative Lunar New Year holiday.
The previous three films in the franchise — spanning 2015-2021 and all directed by Chen Sicheng — collectively earned over $1.3 billion in cinemas, with the vast majority coming from the domestic Chinese market.
The new title, Detective Chinatown 1900, is co-directed by Chen and Dai Mo. Detective Chinatown favorites Wang Baoqiang and Liu Haoran both return to star, along with franchise newcomer Chow Yun Fat. The film is a prequel that takes audiences back to turn-of-the-century San Francisco. The supporting cast includes Hollywood actor John Cusack, Yue Yunpeng (Full River Red), Steven Zhang (Endless Journey) and Bai Ke (Johnny Keep Walking!).
The film’s story turns on the mysterious killing of a white woman in San Francisco’s Chinatown. After a Chinese man becomes the chief suspect, city residents become outraged and demand the shutdown of all of Chinatown. Chinese medicine practitioner Qin Fu (Liu) and Chinese man Ah Gui (Wang) soon get drawn into the case, racing against time to find the murderer amidst a battle of wits and courage.
Like the previous titles in the franchise, Detective Chinatown 1900 is produced by Beijing-based Wanda Film and Chen’s banner, As One Production. The production is said to have built a 30-acre backlot in China’s Shandong province to create sprawling sets replicating San Francisco’s vintage Chinatown.
CMC Pictures is distributing the film in North America, Australia and New Zealand, while Trinity CineAsia handles the U.K., Ireland, Spain, Germany and France. Other territories with planned day-and-date releases include Singapore and Malaysia (MM2 Entertainment).
The film will subsequently be released in Hong Kong and Macau on Feb. 13 via Intercontinental Film. Cambodia will follow on Feb. 26, while release dates for Thailand, Indonesia and the Philippines are yet to be determined (MM2 Entertainment).
Beijing-based Blossoms Entertainment in Beijing is handling international sales and managing the international distribution of the film.