Stephen Chow’s ‘Shaolin Soccer’ Spinoff ‘Kung Fu Soccer’ Sets U.S. Release After Dominating China’s Summer Box Office
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Stephen Chow’s *Kung Fu Soccer*, a spinoff of *Shaolin Soccer*, will open in cinemas in the U.S., Canada, U.K. and Ireland on 23 October. Its Western release follows a strong run in China, where it was the country’s highest-grossing film of the summer season.
Written and directed by Chow, the film reworks the martial-arts football premise around an all-female team led by Zhang Xiaofei, with Dilraba Dilmurat as its striker and Lay Zhang as its kung fu mentor. It earned about $344.4 million in China between 1 June and 31 August, helping lift summer box office revenue there to $1.86 billion, up 4.45% on the previous year. Cinemas will show the original-language version and a new English dub featuring Chow, Jimmy O. Yang and MC Jin.
- Kung Fu Soccer opens in four Western markets on 23 October.
- It earned about $344.4 million in China’s summer season.
- The Shaolin Soccer spinoff centres on an all-female football team.
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Shaolin Soccer is a 2001 comedy in which footballers use kung fu, the Chinese martial art, on the pitch. Its writer and director, Stephen Chow, is known for blending physical comedy with action and martial arts.
The new film returns to that premise with an all-female team led by actor Zhang Xiaofei. Dilraba Dilmurat plays the striker, while Lay Zhang is the team’s kung fu mentor.
The film’s success in China has drawn attention to its prospects with audiences abroad. Its cinema release in several English-speaking markets gives viewers a choice of the original-language version or an English dub.