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Min Lee, AP Entertainment Writer, has published the following article regarding how Transformers has become the 2nd highest grossing foreign movie of all time in China.
HONG KONG (AP) -- "Transformers" raked in $37.3 million at the Chinese box office, making it the No. 2 grossing foreign movie of all time in the country after "Titanic," an official said Monday.
Film Bureau Deputy Director-General Zhang Pimin said in a phone interview "Transformers" was now second after surpassing the "The Da Vinci Code," which drew in more than 100 million yuan ($13.3 million).
"Titanic" made 359 million yuan ($48 million) in China.
"Transformers," which was released in China with more than 500 copies, will also get an IMAX screening at five theaters starting Tuesday.
Zhang denied a report in the Ming Pao Weekly magazine over the weekend that China's government banned media coverage of "Transformers" and its box office earnings when it neared the 200 million yuan ($27 million) mark.
"How could it do so well at the box office without publicity?" he said.
China carefully screens media content and only allows in about 20 foreign movies a year, although that quota can be bypassed through co-productions with local companies.
Regulators have also tried to maximize revenue for Chinese studios by banning foreign films from theaters during holidays and school vacations, when audiences are biggest.
China's box office is still small compared to the U.S. A movie making tens of millions of U.S. dollars in China is considered a major hit while a big hit in the U.S. can rake in several hundred million domestically.
"Transformers" is a production of DreamWorks and Paramount, which are both divisions of Viacom Inc. The characters in the movie are based on toys from Hasbro, Inc.