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Dirty Monkeys’ war comedy-drama “Once Upon a Time in the Middle East” held onto the No. 1 position at the mainland China box office during the Aug. 21–23 weekend, taking in RMB298.8 million ($43.9 million) in its second weekend of release, according to data from Artisan Gateway.

Directed by Wen Muye (“Dying to Survive”) and starring Shen Teng, Jiang Qiming, Aarif Rahman, and Omar Sherif, the hit production has accumulated $232.2 million since launching nationwide on Aug. 11. The story tracks a Chinese chef who moves to the Middle East to clear family debts by running a restaurant, only to see the venue become a community refuge when armed conflict breaks out across the region.

Pearl River Film Group’s crime drama “V” debuted in second place, pulling in $18.9 million over the three-day weekend frame. Bolstered by early screenings following its Aug. 19 premiere, the feature has reached a cumulative total of $30.7 million. Directed by Han Yan (“Love Never Ends”), the film features a heavyweight ensemble cast led by Tony Ka Fai Leung, Zhu Yilong, Tan Jianci, and Kara Wai. The narrative follows an ambitious figure who uses relentless daring and sharp enterprise to rise through the ranks and taste immense success, only to see dark consequences and long-buried shadows gather to threaten his triumph.

Universal’s epic “The Odyssey” took third position in its sophomore frame, collecting $15.9 million for a total of $68.7 million.

Pearl Studio’s animated fantasy feature “All Wishes Come True!” moved to fourth place in its sixth weekend, adding $9.8 million. Directed by Mu Zhengyang, the enduring family hit has amassed $255.7 million since its July 18 debut.

Sony’s superhero blockbuster “Spider-Man: Brand New Day” rounded out the top five, generating $4.6 million in its fourth full weekend, lifting its cumulative total in China to $219.9 million since rolling out on July 29.

Mainland China’s overall weekend grosses reached $103.1 million, while the 2026 year-to-date revenue stands at $4 billion, down 28.6% from the same period in 2025.

“The Odyssey” maintained its commanding position atop the South Korea box office during the weekend of Aug. 21–23.

According to data from KOBIS, the tracking service operated by the Korean Film Council, the Christopher Nolan-directed tentpole generated $10.6 million from 1,321,204 admissions over the three-day frame across 2,182 screens, capturing 66.3% of total weekend business. Showing formidable holding power in its third outing, the film pushed its cumulative local gross to $56.8 million from 7,109,368 total admissions since its Aug. 5 launch.

Superhero tentpole “Spider-Man: Brand New Day” held onto second place in its fourth frame, taking $2.9 million from 386,754 admissions. The film accounted for 18.39% of the market, lifting its cumulative South Korea haul to $61.4 million from 8,127,615 total admissions.

“Insidious: Out of the Further” opened in third place, generating $547,555 from 71,592 admissions across 678 screens. Since its Aug. 20 premiere, the release has collected $706,508 from 93,922 total admissions.

Local animated feature “Teenieping: Legend of the Whale Heartstone” finished fourth, adding $480,487 from 69,482 admissions. Directed by Kim Soo-hoon, the musical fantasy adventure follows Princess Romi, Heartsping, and their crew venturing into the deep sea to rescue Queen Velita. The sequel has grossed $5.3 million from 788,263 viewers since its Aug. 5 rollout.

Animated mystery “Detective Conan the Movie: Fallen Angel of the Highway” took fifth place in its second weekend, pulling in $380,240 from 50,053 admissions. Directed by Takahiro Hasui, the franchise installment has reached a total of $2.5 million from 356,276 tickets.

The local action-comedy sequel “Ok! Madam: Bon Voyage” took sixth place, generating $239,231 from 33,585 admissions. Directed by Lee Cheol-ha and starring Uhm Jung-hwa, Park Sung-woong, Lee Sang-yun, and Sooyoung, the film has now earned $2 million.

“Paw Patrol: The Dino Movie” placed seventh, collecting $143,937 from 20,488 admissions to move its gross to $671,567 from 95,605 admissions.

Sci-fi thriller “Hope” took eighth place, adding $130,477 from 18,366 admissions. Directed by Na Hong-Jin and starring Hwang Jung-min, Zo In-sung, Jung Ho-yeon, Michael Fassbender, and Alicia Vikander, the alien-encounter feature has accumulated $35 million from 4,518,395 admissions.

Studio Ghibli’s 2010 animated fantasy “The Secret World of Arrietty,” directed by Yonebayashi Hiromasa, placed ninth via a specialty re-release, earning $82,305 from 10,431 admissions to lift its lifetime South Korea gross to $5.6 million from 1,086,258 tickets.

Rounding out the top ten was “Warfare,” which pulled in $58,172 from 7,333 admissions over the frame. The real-time Iraq War encounter film has generated $108,585 from 13,863 admissions since its Aug. 19 rollout.

The overall market collective gross for the weekend was $16.1 million, down from last week’s $22.3 million.

In “Beloved,” opening the Norwegian International Film Festival Haugesund, Erik Poppe takes on a script by Nobel Prize winner Jon Fosse.

“It’s a project that has been on my desk for many, many years. Jon Fosse wrote it almost 20 years ago. After he received the Nobel Prize in Literature [in 2023], it felt like the whole world wanted to read it. But I always knew it was a powerful piece of work,” he tells Variety. 

“Beloved” follows a couple who meet in a small coastal town. They have a child, but Asle is drawn back to the sea while Gerd remains in the village.

The film, starring Leo Magnus de la Nuez and Kristi-Helene Giæver Engeberg, was produced by Paradox and SF Production. It’s sold by Reinvent Yellow Sales. 

One of Norway’s most acclaimed directors, Poppe is known for larger productions, from “The King’s Choice” to “Utøya: July 22,” “The Emigrants” and “Quisling: The Final Days.” But focusing on a more intimate story felt right this time.

“Looking at the world as it is right now, I needed to hold onto some sense of hope – or at least something more human. I wanted to explore the relationship between two people, as well as between a father and son, because it’s a story of daily life I can relate to.” 

He adds: “We’ve all seen how well they perform in the cinemas, surprisingly enough. People long for something honest and truthful that they can just dive into.”

The fact that Fosse is only growing in stature doesn’t hurt either. 

“He’s about to be named one of the most important living authors in the world today, and this isn’t based on his novels or plays. [The screenplay] is an original piece of work that he wrote with only one goal in mind: to make it into a movie.”

Still more adaptations are likely on their way. 

“I’m quite sure more movies will be made from his novels. As a filmmaker, he’s opening up the space between the dialogue for me to fill in. His style is so simple yet deep. You connect with it, understand it, and it hits you right in the stomach. His novels are short, but when you read them, it feels like Dostoyevsky. I find it extraordinary.” 

Despite following only two characters and their son, Poppe didn’t change his approach to working with actors.

“On all my movies, I insist on having at least eight or 12 weeks with them [prior to the shoot]. If I can establish a truthful, honest relationship with my actors, I can push them quite far,” he says. He also paid extra attention to their surroundings. 

“I spent a lot of time figuring out where to shoot this film. It’s almost like a mythical landscape, a mythical part of Norway. It’s the fourth character in the film.”

Misty and melancholic, it mirrors their insecurities and growing estrangement. 

“It’s quite typical of many relationships. It’s so hard to talk to each other,” says Poppe.

“I was raised by two parents who were almost exactly like these two. Except, it was my mother who left and my sister and I stayed home with my father. The film is about the language these two used to share, which is disappearing, it’s about where they are and what they’re longing for.”

Which is why, despite that title, there is a darker side to ‘Beloved.’

“Based on our first screenings, people have been surprised, but they also really love that it’s not your regular love story,” he admits. 

“I think it’s a brave piece of work by Jon. I was tempted by the fact that he doesn’t follow the paths we are so used to. I wanted to explore how that could work in a movie.”