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With $2 billion at the global box office, Ne Zha II is the most successful animated feature of all time
Trailer: A24

Ne Zha II
Directed by Jiao Zi
Not Rated
Reborn 22 August 2025
#NeZhaII • #IMAX

Surrender to the hype. Ne Zha II rules.

Seeing Is Believing

It's no wonder Ne Zha II has become the most commercially successful animated feature of all time with $2 billion raked in at the global box office even before stepping foot on American soil.

A limited U.S. theatrical release earlier this year garnered minimal attention. A24 is hoping to change that with a second English release, this time featuring a voice cast led by Michelle Yeoh and presentations in premium formats, including IMAX. It’s certainly the kind of David Lean-scale epic that can easily fill out the large-format screen.

This is a movie all about one word: empowerment.

The title character, Ne Zha, has a line of dialogue that immediately entered Mattopia’s Pantheon of Great Movie Quotes: "If I can’t be who I am, I’ll just have to change the world."

Maybe Ne Zha is a relative.

Ne Zha II is an animated feature most likely because it’d be virtually impossible to film it any other way. This is epic, massive-scale fantasy cinema that carries with it elements of Marvel, Lord of the Rings, Star Wars, Harry Potter and, sure, Pixar (in particular, the sophistication of Inside Out). But don’t be mistaken. This movie’s roots date back some 500 years in source material that surely influenced those Western titles, but more about that later.

What’s important to know is this: Ne Zha is a demon child. He’s not Damian, the evil boy from The Omen. But he is a demon and he knows it. He’s conflicted about it, as well. He knows he’s impulsive and he’s been a menace. He’s also been a burden to his parents. And he feels bad about it. All of it. That’s some significant inner turmoil.

His struggles are all oh so real.

It’s foolhardy to simply bucket this movie (clocking in at 2 hours 23 minutes) as a children’s movie merely because it’s animated. This is some serious storytelling rich in philosophy and mythology and its central conflict involves Taoism.

You read that right.

Taoism.

Universal harmony is at stake on many levels. Truly, this is "the way" to challenge the seemingly natural order of things.

Fire and Water

It’s so fitting, then, that this story centers around the ultimate in Yin and Yang. The adventure begins with our hero, Ne Zha, becoming one with enemy turned friend, Ao Bing. Literally. Two souls in one body. But this isn’t Freaky Friday-style silliness. It goes deeper. Think of Ne Zha as the Demon Orb and Ao Bing as the Spirit Pearl. Evil and Good.

Ne Zha II is a colorful, beautifully rendered adventure. The classic Hollywood epics featured a cast of thousands. Ne Zha II boasts an army of some 4,000 animation artists. These storytellers fill the screen with loads of good humor and some surprising emotional turns that earn their tugs on the heartstrings.

The movie is packed solid with universal themes of destiny and identity, punching back at how the world attempts to confine – or even crush – people. And it does this while mercifully steering clear of the kind of blatant identity politics and virtue signaling that has – in part – drained the popularity of Pixar’s latest efforts and has fractured Pixar’s audience. (The corporate PR storyline "people were inadvertently trained to watch Pixar movies on Disney+ during the pandemic" is merely a weak cover for serious creative failures that have damaged the brand.)

This one features universal concepts and classic values, such as following the rules (or… maybe not), telling the truth, trust, justice and, of course, good and evil. At one point, a great observation is made about Ne Zha: a good role model could really change his life. For many modern-day kids, Ne Zha very well might be that role model.

The kid’s appearance is the target of criticism from those around him, even he acknowledges it himself: he has a pig’s nose and dark eye bags; he’s short and he’s missing a tooth. And he’s a smidge abrasive. He’s also perfect. He’s lazy, sure, but he never gives up.

Again. He’s perfect as he is.

In short, Ne Zha is a really great character. He’s a little off-putting at first, but in the true fashion of a hero’s journey, he makes an impression as he works through his own conflicts. After a while, he’s quite lovable.

Please make no mistake about it. It’s an earned lovability; it’s not some cheesy, manipulative, turn-on-a-dime character hook. And that’s the hallmark of great storytelling and great character development.

It’s hard to resist a character like Ne Zha, who revels in the notion he’s too young to live in fear, a kid who’s ready to fight against the world.

The Oblivion Pill

A movie makes $2 billion by telling a great story that can be universally appreciated. It inspires audiences to be more, to do better. To not live in fear.

During his quest (one involving immortality, no less), Ne Zha must face three monumental challenges (a thought of Indiana Jones and the Last Crusade etches a smile in the mind). Lethal cunning, indeed.

Crouching Tiger, Hidden Dragon has nothing on Ne Zha II.

Throw in fantasy elements like a sky-splitting claw (which is quite a visual), dinosaurs, sea creatures, cute(-ish) rodents and a fundamentally positive attitude and it becomes a global movie event.

But that’s on the eye-popping visual side of the experience. There are also the narrative elements that pile on layers of complexity, intelligence and humor.

At one moment, characters are incinerated into pearl-like pills. In another moment, a Snow White-like talking mirror bemoans how "everything hurts."

This is that kind of all-encompassing movie.

Stay through the end credits for a tease of what’s to come by way of a very funny "bonus" sequence (there’s even a teasing title card encouraging people to stay). But also listen to the song that accompanies the end credits and (as needed) read the subtitles.

The lyrics are great, and they reinforce the story’s concepts of empowerment and self-determination. To wit: "Fears and scars are my blades that slay."

Yeah. That’s how you get to $2 billion.

MCU, DCU… FCU

The creatives behind Ne Zha II have effectively stormed two of Disney’s pop culture strongholds: Pixar and the Marvel Cinematic Universe concept. Ne Zha II is the third movie in the Fengshen Cinematic Universe, following Ne Zha and Jiang Ziya. The latter offers Ne Zha a mid-end credits cameo that’s quite entertaining.

While it’s not necessary to have seen the first two movies before seeing Ne Zha II, it certainly helps. And, happily, both are readily available to rent or purchase from Well Go USA on platforms such as Apple TV.

The FCU draws inspiration from The Investiture of the Gods (with Fengshen Cinematic Universe being a reference to the novel’s Chinese title, Fengshen Yanyi), a sprawling saga of gods and demons dating back to the Ming dynasty (16th Century), with the action taking place during the Shang and Zhou dynasties (1600-256 BC). It’s a territory rich with thematic elements inspired by influences including Chinese mythology, Buddhism and Taoism.

Some of the themes of destiny, mortality and life choices can get heavy, particularly when compared to traditional American animated fare, which tends to keep things fairly light, even at the darkest moments.

Regardless of age, though, the finer points of the storyline in Ne Zha II can be a little challenging to follow for Western minds as it digs deep into Eastern philosophy and history and fills the screen with cultural symbolism.

The FCU, like Marvel’s MCU, features a multiverse concept which presents an alternate version of Ne Zha in a different timeline in New Gods: Nezha Reborn. Even in Ne Zha II, Ne Zha undergoes a striking transformation.

• Originally published at MovieHabit.com.