Josh Safdie's Marty Supreme is heading to China, and with that move, A24 is about to break its own box office record.
Deadline reports that the Timothée Chalamet vehicle—a biographical drama about legendary ping-pong player Marty Reisman—has secured a Chinese release date, virtually guaranteeing it will surpass Everything Everywhere All at Once as A24's biggest global earner.
Let's pause to appreciate how wild this is. A24—the indie darling that made its name on weird, uncompromising films like The Witch and Uncut Gems—now has theatrical releases that require international box office analysis. They've gone from scrappy underdog to legitimate player in less than a decade.
The China release is strategic genius. Ping-pong isn't just a sport there; it's practically a national religion. A prestige American film about a ping-pong legend, starring one of Hollywood's biggest young stars? That's a built-in audience waiting to happen.
Marty Supreme has already performed solidly in North America, but China's box office could add another $50-100 million to its global total. For context, Everything Everywhere All at Once made $143 million worldwide. Marty Supreme is already at $95 million domestically. Do the math.
This represents A24's evolution from a boutique studio making $5 million art films into a genuine powerhouse capable of producing awards-worthy cinema that also makes money. They're still making weird stuff—their slate includes everything from Ari Aster's latest nightmare to obscure foreign language acquisitions. But they've figured out how to balance commercial appeal with creative integrity.
