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By Casey Hall and Nicoco Chan SHANGHAI, Dec 1 (Reuters) – Disney's Zootopia 2 became the highest-grossing animated foreign film ever in China, despite generally muted interest in overseas movies in the country. As of Monday morning Beijing time, box office tracker Maoyan showed Zootopia 2's local box office tally reaching 1.95 billion yuan ($275.6 million) in its first six days of release. "It is Disney's most important movie in China this year, for sure," said Ashley Dudarenok, founder of China digital consultancy Chozan, with its themes of personal resilience and societal harmony resonating with local audiences. Its runaway success in China – where Zootopia 2 sales accounted for around 95% of all movie ticket sales over its opening weekend – is particularly notable given the changing environment for foreign films in China over the nine years since the first Zootopia film was released. The original Zootopia also became China's most popular foreign animated film when it was released in 2016. Hollywood films were caught up earlier this year in the China-U.S. trade war. Beijing curbed the number of U.S. films that were allowed to be shown in China in retaliation for higher tariffs on Chinese goods – a move analysts said would only have a limited impact, given the waning influence of foreign films in China. AN EXCEPTION, NOT THE RULE Hollywood studios once looked to China, the world's second-largest film market, to help boost their box office performances. But domestic movies increasingly have outperformed Hollywood fare in China. Earlier this year, local animation "Ne Zha 2" eclipsed Pixar's "Inside Out 2" to become the world's highest-grossing animated film of all time after raking in nearly $2 billion at the Chinese box office. Even so, Disney seemed confident that Zootopia 2 would find a significant audience in China, with Chief Executive Bob Iger travelling to Shanghai for a local premiere a fortnight ago. In addition, Disney partnered with China Eastern Airlines on a Zootopia 2-themed plane.  And the Shanghai Disneyland resort is home to the world's only Zootopia-themed land, which opened in 2023 to capitalise on local affection for the original film. "Disney is heavily reliant on huge blockbuster releases, which in turn become IP and monetise through experiences, merchandise and other areas," said PP Foresight analyst Paolo Pescatore, adding that in spite of geopolitical tensions and an uncertain macroeconomic environment, China remains a "massive and expanding market for its theme parks, movies and merchandise." According to Chris Fenton, author of "Feeding the Dragon: Inside the Trillion Dollar Dilemma Facing Hollywood, the NBA, and American Business," a potential downside of Zootopia 2's success could be the false hope it might give Hollywood studios that China could be rekindling a love affair with foreign films.  "Beijing doesn't view Hollywood as a solution to restrained consumer spending [in China], so I wouldn't read into this being a pivot on Beijing's part," he said. "Beijing knows if Hollywood sees some continued promise in their market, filmmakers will continue to kowtow to Beijing's storytelling requirements." ($1 = 7.0750 Chinese yuan) (Reporting by Casey Hall and Nicoco Chan in Shanghai)

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By Lisa Richwine LOS ANGELES, Nov 30 (Reuters) – Walt Disney's animated "Zootopia 2" racked up an estimated $556 million in global ticket sales over the U.S. Thanksgiving weekend, providing a strong kickoff to Hollywood's crucial holiday moviegoing season. Nearly half of the film's box office receipts from Wednesday through Sunday came from China, bucking a trend of Hollywood movies finishing behind locally made films. The $272 million tally made "Zootopia 2" Hollywood's highest-grossing animated movie in China, surpassing a record set by the first "Zootopia" in 2016. Also in theaters, Universal Pictures' movie musical "Wicked: For Good" claimed $92.2 million worldwide in its second weekend, bringing its total to $393.3 million after 10 days. The fervor for the two films provided welcome news for movie theater owners who hope audiences will pack cinemas through Christmas, the second-busiest time of the year for moviegoing. Annual box office sales have yet to recover to the pre-pandemic levels seen in 2019. "Zootopia 2" collected $156 million of its worldwide total in the United States and Canada, making it the leader on domestic box office charts. The movie, set in a city of animals, tells the story of a bunny police officer, voiced by Ginnifer Goodwin, and her fox partner, voiced by Jason Bateman. "It’s a proud moment for Disney Animation and all of us at Disney, not to mention a great way to start the holiday season," Disney Entertainment Co-Chairman Alan Bergman said in a statement. Year-to-date domestic ticket sales reached $7.8 billion, up 1.2% from a year ago but 23% shy of 2019, according to data from Comscore. Thanksgiving weekend sales are expected to rank among the top five of all time in the United States and Canada when final numbers come in on Monday, said Paul Dergarabedian, Comscore's head of marketplace trends. Coming releases include James Cameron's third "Avatar" film just before Christmas. "Think about how many people were in theaters over the past week being exposed to theater marketing and trailers," Dergarabedian said. "Hopefully that creates the momentum that can give us a really solid home stretch of the year." (Reporting by Lisa Richwine; Editing by Chizu Nomiyama and Chris Reese)

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By Lisa Richwine LOS ANGELES, Nov 30 (Reuters) – Walt Disney's animated "Zootopia 2" racked up an estimated $556 million in global ticket sales over the U.S. Thanksgiving weekend, providing a strong kickoff to Hollywood's crucial holiday moviegoing season. Nearly half of the film's box office receipts from Wednesday through Sunday came from China. The $272 million tally made it Hollywood's highest-grossing animated movie in the country, surpassing a record set by the first "Zootopia" in 2016. Also in theaters, Universal Pictures' movie musical "Wicked: For Good" claimed $92.2 million worldwide in its second weekend, bringing its total to $393.3 million after 10 days. The fervor for the two films provided welcome news for movie theater owners who hope audiences will pack cinemas in the coming weeks through Christmas, the second-busiest time of the year for moviegoing. Annual box office sales have yet to recover to the pre-pandemic levels seen in 2019. "Zootopia 2" collected $156 million of its worldwide total in the United States and Canada, making it the leader on domestic box office charts. The movie set in a city of animals tells the story of a bunny police officer, voiced by Ginnifer Goodwin, and her fox partner, voiced by Jason Bateman. "It’s a proud moment for Disney Animation and all of us at Disney, not to mention a great way to start the holiday season," Disney Entertainment Co-Chairman Alan Bergman said in a statement. "Wicked: For Good," last weekend's domestic box office champion, dropped to second place this week with $93 million. The movie stars Ariana Grande and Cynthia Erivo in a prequel to the classic film "The Wizard of Oz." (Reporting by Lisa Richwine; Editing by Chris Reese and Chizu Nomiyama )

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LOS ANGELES, Nov 30 (Reuters) – "Zootopia 2," Disney's animated adventure about a city of animals, racked up an estimated $556 million in global movie ticket sales over the U.S. Thanksgiving weekend, according to studio estimates on Sunday. The figure captures box office receipts from Wednesday through Sunday and represents the fourth-highest global opening of all time, Disney said. Also in theaters, Universal Pictures' movie musical "Wicked: For Good" claimed $92.2 million worldwide, bringing its total to $393.3 million in its first 10 days. The fervor for the two films provided welcome news for movie theater owners who hope audiences will pack theaters throughout the holiday season. Annual movie ticket sales have yet to recover to the pre-pandemic levels seen in 2019. (Reporting by Lisa Richwine; Editing by Chris Reese)

(The article has been published through a syndicated feed. Except for the headline, the content has been published verbatim. Liability lies with original publisher.)

LOS ANGELES, Nov 30 (Reuters) – "Zootopia 2," Disney's animated adventure about a city of animals, racked up an estimated $556 million in global movie ticket sales over the U.S. Thanksgiving weekend, according to studio estimates on Sunday. The figure represents sales from Wednesday through Sunday. (Reporting by Lisa Richwine; Editing by Chris Reese)

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LONDON, Nov 29 (Reuters) – Tom Stoppard, one of Britain's best-known playwrights, has died at the age of 88. Below are some tributes and reactions. KING CHARLES AND QUEEN CAMILLA "A dear friend who wore his genius lightly, he could, and did, turn his pen to any subject, challenging, moving and inspiring his audiences, borne from his own personal history… Let us all take comfort in his immortal line: 'Look on every exit as being an entrance somewhere else'." MICK JAGGER "Tom Stoppard was my favourite playwright. He leaves us with a majestic body of intellectual and amusing work. I will always miss him." UNITED AGENTS Stoppard's agent said it was an honour to work with him. "We are deeply saddened to announce that our beloved client and friend, Tom Stoppard, has died peacefully at home in Dorset, surrounded by his family. He will be remembered for his works, for their brilliance and humanity, and for his wit, his irreverence, his generosity of spirit and his profound love of the English language." THEATRE CRITIC MARK SHENTON "For over 50, 60 years he's dominated the theatre," Shenton told Sky News. "And the cinema as well. He had a phenomenal impact. He was probably Britain's leading playwright." UK WRITERS' TRADE UNION "We are so sad to learn of the death of Tom Stoppard," The Writers' Guild of Great Britain said. "A recipient of our Outstanding Contribution to Writing in 2017, he was presented by fellow playwright and former WGGB President (David Edgar) who said of him: 'Like no one else, he has challenged, dazzled and amazed.'" BRITAIN'S NATIONAL THEATRE "We are devastated to hear of the death of Tom Stoppard. As a corner stone of the National Theatre for 50 years, Tom's influence on British theatre has been simply immense." JOHN LENNON'S SON, SEAN ONO LENNON "An absolute genius." BILL KRISTOL, FORMER CHIEF OF STAFF TO U.S. VICE PRESIDENT DURING GEORGE H.W. BUSH PRESIDENCY "What an interesting and talented playwright! On hearing of his death, I was struck that one should be grateful that he was given the time to write his last and perhaps most personal play, Leopoldstadt." ROYAL COURT THEATRE "Today we join with writers and theatre artists across the world to mark the passing of Tom Stoppard, a playwright whose work probed the deepest human mysteries of truth, time, mortality and frailty while dazzling with wit, laughter and the buoyancy of the human spirit." (Reporting by Sam Tabahriti; Editing by Andrew Heavens and Nia Williams)

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By Barbara Lewis LONDON, Nov 29 (Reuters) – "What's it about?" was a frequent response from bemused theatre-goers to "Rosencrantz and Guildenstern Are Dead", Tom Stoppard's first stage triumph. Tired of being asked, Stoppard is said to have replied to a woman outside a theatre on Broadway: "It's about to make me very rich." He later questioned whether he had said "very", Hermione Lee writes in Stoppard's authorised biography, but he had undoubtedly managed to transform his previously precarious finances. For every puzzled spectator, there were many more ecstatic fans and critics, dazzled by the wit, brilliant wordplay and sheer daring of a young playwright who had turned Shakespeare inside out and placed the spotlight, not on the eponymous Hamlet, but on two minor characters from the same play. First performed at the Edinburgh Festival Fringe in 1966, the following year, "Rosencrantz and Guildenstern Are Dead" made Stoppard, at the age of 29, the youngest playwright to be staged at the National Theatre in London. From there, the play went to Broadway and had more than 250 productions worldwide over its first decade. Stoppard's career flourished for decades more, embracing stage, screen and radio, and demonstrating his thirst to tackle any subject – from mathematics to Dadaist art to landscape gardening. His final play, "Leopoldstadt", first performed in 2020, follows the story of a Jewish family in Vienna inspired by his own history. Stoppard's many other successes included "“The Real Inspector Hound", which parodied stage whodunnits and sent up theatre critics, “"Jumpers", a 1.5 million word epic that delighted and confused its public, and "“Night and Day", a satire on the British media. His densely packed, intricately constructed plays were based on extensive research. "“Arcadia", in 1993, considered by many critics to be his masterpiece, blended chaos theory, Isaac Newton and the poet Lord Byron's love life. The word Stoppardian, first recorded in 1978, meanwhile entered the Oxford English Dictionary. It refers to the use of verbal gymnastics while addressing philosophical concepts. The honours he won at home and abroad included an Oscar for co-authoring the screenplay of the 1998 hit film "Shakespeare in Love", and a record five Tony awards for Best Play. In 1997, he was knighted for his contributions to theatre. He died at home in Dorset, surrounded by his family, his agent United Agents said on Saturday. The cause was not immediately known. 'INCREDIBLY LUCKY' Stoppard was born Tomas Straussler on July 3, 1937 in what was then Czechoslovakia, the son of Eugen Straussler, a doctor, and Marta (or Martha), née Beckova, who had trained as a nurse. The Jewish family fled the Nazis and moved to Singapore when he was an infant. Singapore in turn became unsafe. With his mother and elder brother Peter, he escaped to India. His father stayed behind and died while fleeing after Singapore fell to the Japanese. In India, Marta Straussler married a British army major, Kenneth Stoppard, and the family moved to England. Boarding school followed at Pocklington in Yorkshire, northern England, where Tom Stoppard loved cricket more than drama and learned how to be British, which Major Stoppard considered the ultimate nationality. The adult Stoppard, who rediscovered decades later the Jewish roots that he explored in his final play, would accuse his stepfather of "an innate antisemitism". He eventually learnt from Czech relatives that all four of his grandparents had been Jewish, and that they had died in Nazi concentration camps. "I feel incredibly lucky not to have had to survive or die. It's a conspicuous part of what might be termed a charmed life," he wrote in Talk, a U.S. magazine, in 1999, reflecting on returning with his brother to their birthplace Zlin in what is now the Czech Republic. 'INTELLECT AND EMOTION ARE BEDFELLOWS' Despite showing academic prowess at school, Stoppard decided not to go to university. Instead, he went straight to work as a reporter on a local newspaper in Bristol, western England. “I wanted to be a great journalist," Stoppard later said. "My first ambition was to be lying on the floor of an African airport while machine-gun bullets zoomed over my typewriter. But I wasn’t much use as a reporter. I felt I didn’t have the right to ask people questions. "I always thought they’d throw the teapot at me or call the police." While he found reporting daunting, he threw himself into working as a theatre and cinema critic, and his love of drama took hold. He began making the influential friendships with actors and other writers that would shape his career. He made up his mind to move to London and start writing plays. Success only ensued after dogged persistence and sleepless nights spent chain-smoking and wrestling with writer's block. One of Britain's most established critics, Michael Billington, who reported on every Stoppard first night for half a century, sought to pin down the playwright's status in a piece in Britain's Guardian newspaper in 2015. Stoppard, Billington found, was "a writer capable of inciting admiration, awe and astonishment as well as a baffled bewilderment, sometimes all in the same evening". Addressing the frequent criticism that Stoppard could be overly cerebral, Billington wrote that, at his finest, he demonstrated that "intellect and emotion are bedfellows rather than opposites". He showed the world that a scientific or philosophical concept could be dramatic subject matter. HOPES OF POSTERITY The self-deprecating dramatist rejected classification and resisted requests to explain himself. “Whenever I talk to intelligent students about my work, I feel nervous, as if I were going through customs," he told the New Yorker magazine in 1977. "‘Let’s have a look in your suitcase, if you don’t mind, sir," Stoppard continued. "And, sure enough, under the first layer of shirts there’s a pound of hash and fifty watches and all kinds of exotic contraband. ‘How do you explain this, sir?’ ‘I’m sorry, Officer, I admit it’s there, but I honestly can’t remember packing it.’" For all Stoppard's dismissal of academic interpretation, he had hopes his name would live on. "Quite frankly, it has always meant a lot to me, the idea that one is writing for the future as well," he said on receiving a lifetime achievement award in 2017. "I’m never convinced it will work out that way." 'THEATRE IS RECREATION' For Stoppard, theatre, first of all, was for fun. "Theatre is recreation, it must entertain. But does the audience have to understand everything they see? If you or I go into an art gallery, we don’t understand what the artist is trying to tell us, though we may enjoy the painting," he said in a 1995 interview. Stoppard's ventures into film led to his taking the top award at the Venice Film festival in 1990 for his screen adaptation of "“Rosencratz and Guildenstern Are Dead". He wrote the screenplay for Steven Spielberg's "“Empire of the Sun" and earned an Oscar nomination for his work on Terry Gilliam's cult 1985 hit “"Brazil" before winning with "Shakespeare in Love". Stoppard had four sons, two from each of his first two marriages. He married his third wife television producer Sabrina Guinness in 2014. His son Ed Stoppard is an actor, who performed in "Leopoldstadt". Critics hailed Stoppard for confronting his own family history in the play. It marked the end of a theatrical journey that was willing to take on almost any subject matter. In his thirties, he said: "“I would like ultimately, before being carried out feet first, to have done a bit of absolutely everything." (Additional reporting by Peter Griffiths and Sam Tabahriti; Editing by Olivier Holmey)

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LONDON, Nov 29 (Reuters) – Tom Stoppard, one of Britain's best-known playwrights, has died at the age of 88. Below are some tributes and reactions. MICK JAGGER "Tom Stoppard was my favourite playwright. He leaves us with a majestic body of intellectual and amusing work. I will always miss him." UNITED AGENTS Stoppard's agent said it was an honour to work with him. "We are deeply saddened to announce that our beloved client and friend, Tom Stoppard, has died peacefully at home in Dorset, surrounded by his family. He will be remembered for his works, for their brilliance and humanity, and for his wit, his irreverence, his generosity of spirit and his profound love of the English language." THEATRE CRITIC MARK SHENTON "For over 50, 60 years he's dominated the theatre," Shenton told Sky News. "And the cinema as well. He had a phenomenal impact. He was probably Britain's leading playwright." UK WRITERS' TRADE UNION "We are so sad to learn of the death of Tom Stoppard," The Writers' Guild of Great Britain said. "A recipient of our Outstanding Contribution to Writing in 2017, he was presented by fellow playwright and former WGGB President (David Edgar) who said of him: 'Like no one else, he has challenged, dazzled and amazed.'" BRITAIN'S NATIONAL THEATRE "We are devastated to hear of the death of Tom Stoppard. As a corner stone of the National Theatre for 50 years, Tom's influence on British theatre has been simply immense." JOHN LENNON'S SON, SEAN ONO LENNON "An absolute genius." BILL KRISTOL, FORMER CHIEF OF STAFF TO U.S. VICE PRESIDENT DURING GEORGE H.W. BUSH PRESIDENCY "What an interesting and talented playwright! On hearing of his death, I was struck that one should be grateful that he was given the time to write his last and perhaps most personal play, Leopoldstadt." ROYAL COURT THEATRE "Today we join with writers and theatre artists across the world to mark the passing of Tom Stoppard, a playwright whose work probed the deepest human mysteries of truth, time, mortality and frailty while dazzling with wit, laughter and the buoyancy of the human spirit." (Reporting by Sam Tabahriti; Editing by Andrew Heavens and Nia Williams)

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