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China's AI Movie Fails at Box Office

An AI-generated film in China earned just $181,000 despite a $1.5 million budget and 10,000 showings.

New York Editorial News Desk October 29, 2026 1 min read

The Brief

  • Movie 'Sanxingdui: Future Past' made $181,000 on a $1.5 million budget.
  • Bona Film Group spent two years and 100 people on the project.
  • Only four people attended a screening, according to AFP.

Bona Film Group released 'Sanxingdui: Future Past,' an AI-generated movie, in China. The film, which cost $1.5 million, earned just $181,000.

The movie, which follows a future where AI systems run the world as everything goes wrong, was shown in over 10,000 screenings. Despite this, it failed to attract a wide audience.

Jiang Defu, an executive at Bona Film Group, explained the film's failure, stating that being the first to release an AI-generated movie in China was a challenge.

According to AFP, only four people attended a screening of the film. One attendee said the movie 'falls short' of human-made films, suggesting it may not be worth watching in the future.

The failure of 'Sanxingdui: Future Past' is part of a broader trend where audiences are rejecting AI-generated content. Similar issues have been reported in Western films, such as 'Animals' and 'Secret Invasion.'

Audiences have also criticized the use of AI in advertising, with complaints about poorly generated images and videos. This suggests that while AI can save time, it has not yet reached a level where it is widely accepted by the public.

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