Stephen Chow's 'Kung Fu Soccer' Sets Oct. 23 U.S., Canada, U.K. and Ireland Release After Tops China Summer Box Office

Encore Films sets Oct. 23 Western release

Singapore-based distributor Encore Films said Wednesday that Stephen Chow's "Kung Fu Soccer" will open Oct. 23 in the United States, Canada, the United Kingdom and Ireland, with both the original-language version and a newly produced English dub featuring voice performances by Chow, Jimmy O. Yang and MC Jin. Encore managing director Joyce Lee said the company was "excited to bring the film to cinema audiences" in those markets, adding that "Stephen Chow's films have always transcended language and cultural boundaries." Encore said a Cantonese-language dub has also been completed, though its voice cast has not yet been announced.

Acquisition path and Asia-Pacific rollout

Encore acquired worldwide distribution rights outside mainland China from Chow's production banner The Star Overseas in June, according to the distributor's announcement. The Oct. 23 Western openings follow "Kung Fu Soccer's" earlier theatrical rollout across the Asia-Pacific region after its July 11 release in mainland China. The film later opened in Singapore and Cambodia on Aug. 6, followed by additional Southeast Asian markets including Indonesia, Hong Kong and Thailand, Encore said.

China summer box office and 'Kung Fu Soccer' gross

"Kung Fu Soccer" finished the June 1-Aug. 31 mainland China summer moviegoing season as the season's biggest earner, generating approximately $344.4 million (RMB 2.315 billion) during the period, based on figures from the China Film Administration and Maoyan Research Institute cited by Encore. One syndicated report gave a higher estimate of "about $349 million" without naming a data source. Chow's return helped lift the country's summer theatrical revenue to $1.86 billion (RMB 12.498 billion), up 4.45 percent from a year earlier, according to the same figures.

Plot, cast and Chow's directorial return

Written and directed by Chow, "Kung Fu Soccer" reworks the martial-arts-meets-sports premise of his 2001 film "Shaolin Soccer" around the all-female Emei Women's Football Team as they compete for the Supreme Invincible Cup. Zhang Xiaofei stars as team captain Shuangshuang, Dilraba Dilmurat plays star striker Yu Long, and Lay Zhang serves as kung fu mentor Xu Feng. The ensemble also features Carina Lau, Takeru Satoh, Sisley Choi and Louis Cheung. The film marks Chow's first feature behind the camera since 2019's "The New King of Comedy."

25th-anniversary timing

The release arrives in the 25th anniversary year of "Shaolin Soccer," which became Hong Kong's highest-grossing local film upon its 2001 release before developing a global cult following. Chow followed it with "Kung Fu Hustle" (2004), which Encore said earned more than $100 million worldwide.

Next verifiable milestone

Kung Fu Soccer's scheduled Oct. 23 theatrical opening in the U.S., Canada, U.K. and Ireland, with the Cantonese-dub cast announcement still pending.