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Kahon Chan

Actor and comedian Dayo Wong Tze-wah’s drama, The Last Dance, has broken box office records as the highest-grossing Chinese-language film ever in Hong Kong after opening in cinemas four weeks ago.
Featuring Wong, veteran actor Michael Hui Koon-man and actress Michelle Wai, it had raked in more than HK$122 million as of Saturday morning, the film’s distributor said.
The figure beat the previous record holder, 2023 court drama A Guilty Conscience, which grossed HK$121.79 million locally and also starred Wong.
Directed and written by Anselm Chan Mou-yin, The Last Dance is a drama set around Hong Kong’s funeral trade and family traditions. It had the highest opening day for any Hong Kong film when it debuted on November 9.
It made history again on November 16 with box office takings of HK$9.18 million, the most ever on a single day for a Chinese-language film. More than 120,000 people watched the film in cinemas that day.
Including Hollywood blockbusters, The Last Dance ranks seventh in box office receipts, behind only Titanic, the Avatar franchise and three Avengers films.
The Last Dance was the second Hong Kong film to cross the HK$100 million mark this year, with the other commercial success being Twilight of the Warriors: Walled In, which hit the city’s cinemas in May.
Elsewhere, the film took more than 11 million ringgit (HK$19.36 million) in Malaysia as of Friday, according to cinema operator Golden Screen.
While it will only show in mainland Chinese theatres on December 14, it received a high score of 8.7 out of 10 on film review site Douban.

Crucindo Hung Cho-sing, chairman of the Federation of Motion Film Producers of Hong Kong, said he expected box office sales of The Last Dance to eventually reach HK$150 million given the momentum.
“The script, director and cast have all done a great job, and the subject matter is quite unique, one that resonates really well in Hong Kong and Guangdong,” he said, referring to the film’s climactic funeral ritual.
“It shows that people still enjoy Hong Kong movies, but most importantly, you must make a film suitable for the local and regional audiences.”
Investors had lost touch with the local taste, he said, as city filmmakers had to work with their mainland counterparts to gain access to the mainland market.
But as Hong Kong companies could distribute locally produced movies on the mainland under a new set of free trade agreements sealed in October, he expects the trend to change.
Vera Yuen Wing-han, a lecturer of economics at the University of Hong Kong, said an effective publicity push ahead of the wide release also contributed to the success of The Last Dance, noting that many local films continued to struggle to find audiences.
“Once they get the buzz going and build a critical mass of audiences, it would become easier to hit records after crossing certain thresholds. But you must first get enough people into the theatres at the very beginning to establish the buzz,” she said.
“Many Hong Kong movies don’t have such a budget or powerful appeal of the lead cast – older generations are attracted by Michael Hui, while younger audiences are drawn by Dayo Wong.”
Tenky Tin Kai-man, a spokesman for the Federation of Hong Kong Filmmakers, also observed that audiences were becoming increasingly selective and only paying for movies that had garnered hype.
The popularity of The Last Dance and Twilight of the Warriors, which were released in May and November respectively, also defied the conventional wisdom that high-budget blockbusters would only do well if they were released during key holiday periods.
But he added the industry should not come under the illusion that it could forgo the fundamentals of good filmmaking.
“After all, they didn’t make over HK$100 million by deception or luck. They do have quality. Audiences won’t be fooled by works that are not produced seriously,” Tin said.
Hung said The Last Dance, with its strong cultural references, was now an industry favourite to represent Hong Kong in the international film race for the 2026 Oscars.
The Last Dance has already got off to a strong start for the awards season. Chan was crowned best director at the 61st Asia Pacific Film Festival ceremony on Sunday, while Wai won best leading actress. The film also took the film editing and art direction awards.


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The Last Dance takes first place with record HK$122 million at Hong Kong box office

The Last Dance, which opened in cinemas four weeks ago, stars Dayo Wong and screen veteran Michael Hui. Photo: Sun Yeung

An exhibition about the film, The Last Dance, in Causeway Bay. Photos: Sun Yeung

The Last Dance movie review: Dayo Wong, Michael Hui impress in exquisite funeral drama

Dayo Wong (left) and Michael Hui in a still from The Last Dance (category IIB; Cantonese), directed by Anselm Chan. Michelle Wai co-stars. Photo: Emperor Motion Pictures

Michelle Wai in a still from The Last Dance. Photo: Emperor Motion Pictures

Chu Pak-hong in a still from The Last Dance. Photo: Emperor Motion Pictures

Court drama A Guilty Conscience picks up top prize at Hong Kong Film Awards while crime thriller The Goldfinger is big winner

Carina Lau accepts the best actor prize for her husband Tony Leung, who gives a speech via video link. Photo: Eugene Lee

Best actress winner Jennifer Yu poses for pictures with her award. Photo: Sam Tsang

The cast and team members from “In Broad Daylight” pose on the red carpet Photo: Sam Tsang

Yoyo Tse scooped the best new performer prize for her role in “Fly Me to the Moon”. Photo: Sam Tsang

Rachel Leung won the best supporting actress award. Photo: Eugene Lee

Nick Cheuk took the best new director prize at the 42nd Hong Kong Film Awards. Photo: Eugene Lee

Soi Cheang picked up the best director award for “Mad Fate”. Photo: Sam Tsang

Sammo Hung received a lifetime achievement award. Photo: Sam Tsang

News

Hong Kong

Society

Drama set around funeral trade is highest-grossing Chinese-language film ever in Hong Kong


Drama set around funeral trade is highest-grossing Chinese-language film ever in Hong Kong.


Hong Kong culture

Asian cinema: Hong Kong film

Hong Kong society