Entertainment

The Highest-Grossing Animated Movie of All Time Gets a New Streaming Home

Published

7 days ago

30 November 2025

There have been several box office champions in 2025, although certainly fewer than in previous years. Disney’s live-action remake of Lilo & Stitch managed to break the billion-dollar boundary, with the video game adaptation A Minecraft Movie falling just short of this mark. Elsewhere, the likes of Weapons and Ryan Coogler‘s Sinners defied expectations to become huge critical and box office hits, and the success of Demon Slayer: Kimetsu no Yaiba – The Movie: Infinity Castle proved just how popular anime currently is across the world.

However, no movie can come close to the all-conquering success of the Chinese animated blockbuster Ne Zha 2, which made over $2 billion in global revenue and is currently the highest-grossing animated movie in history, a record that will prove very difficult to break. Sadly, after making its move to U.S. theaters, Ne Zha 2 underperformed, despite a big push from A24 in over 2,200 locations nationwide. If you are one of the many U.S. citizens to have missed out on a viewing of this incredible, record-breaking flick, fear not, as Ne Zha 2 is officially joining the ranks of HBO Max this December. The film will be released on the platform on December 24, making for perfect viewing ahead of the big day. For anyone yet to see Ne Zha 2, here’s a look at the film’s synopsis:

“After the heavenly lightning, although Ne Zha and Ao Bing survived by becoming Spirits, they would soon dissipate completely. Taiyi plans to rebuild Ne Zha and Ao Bing’s mortal bodies with the Seven-colored Precious Lotus. However, during the process of reconstruction, numerous obstacles arise. What will become of the fate of Ne Zha and Ao Bing?”

‘Ne Zha 2’ Deserved Its Record-Breaking Success

The film is now one of the most successful in cinema history, but did Ne Zha 2 deserve its triumph? The answer, simply, is an emphatic yes, with both audiences and critics gushing over this animated action adventure. On review aggregator Rotten Tomatoes, the movie boasts a near-perfect 98% from the former and 92% from the latter, with the consensus on the site reading, “Visually spectacular with a hyperactive sense of humor, Ne Zha II is a sequel that supercharges the original’s charms while still being accessible for the uninitiated.”

Ne Zha 2 will soon be available to stream on HBO Max. Make sure to stay tuned to Collider for the latest streaming stories.