A raw, handcrafted Chinese animation has become an unlikely box-office sensation despite being widely criticised for its rough visuals, confusing storyline and amateur production.
Niu Lai, also known as The Arrival of the Ox, initially appeared destined to disappear without a trace. The film earned just over 7,700 yuan (US$1,070) during its first 10 days in cinemas, making it the lowest-grossing animated film of the year.
That changed over the weekend, when internet curiosity and meme culture sent audiences to theatres. The film made around 5.6 million yuan on Sunday alone, according to Chinese ticketing platform Maoyan, which predicted that it could earn 18.4 million yuan within 30 days of release.
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Other tracking data put the film’s total earnings at more than 11.4 million yuan, a dramatic increase from its opening period. The surge has allowed Niu Lai to hold its ground against major Hollywood releases including Christopher Nolan’s The Odyssey and Spider-Man: Brand New Day.
A Confusing Dream Story
The film follows a calf who enters a dream sequence involving a skylark. During the journey, the bird helps teach him lessons about love, courage, perseverance and sacrifice.
Many viewers have criticised the plot as difficult to follow, while reviews have also taken aim at the film’s visual style. Beijing News described the animation as “stiff and glitchy” and called the voice acting “jarring”.
A newly released animated film called “Niu Lai” (牛来) is going viral for all the wrong reasons in China.
People are calling the visuals “disaster-level” , the entire production team was basically just two people: the director and the screenwriter. After 9 days in theaters, the… pic.twitter.com/l7RM9ZER67
— Tong Bingxue 仝冰雪 (@tongbingxue) August 15, 2026
Jiefang Daily labelled the film a “noticeably crude production” and criticised its content as “overly childish”.
The online reaction has been similarly harsh, although the criticism has helped make Niu Lai one of the most discussed films on Chinese social media in recent days.
“You may regret for 80 minutes if you watch it, but if you don’t, you’ll regret it for life,” one popular social media post about the film said.
A Handmade Alternative to AI
Much of the film’s appeal appears to come from its distinctly analogue production. Audiences have embraced Niu Lai as an alternative to the polished, AI-generated images increasingly filling social media feeds and entertainment platforms.
Social media users have shared clips praising the movie’s “hand-crafted” method — a tongue-in-cheek reference to its poor animation quality — as evidence that its creators did not use AI.
“That’s some serious craftsmanship,” a Weibo user wrote.
Another social media user called it “pure handmade” and the biggest “dark horse” of the summer movie season.
The film was made by just two people: director Xin Yumeng and scriptwriter Sun Lifang, who also provided all the voices and animation.
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The production’s modest origins have added to its appeal. According to Chinese corporate-data provider Qichacha, the company behind Niu Lai was previously an interior-decoration business and only entered the film industry in 2021.
Beating the Hollywood Competition
Niu Lai’s viral rise has been particularly notable because it is competing for attention with two highly anticipated American releases: Nolan’s epic adaptation of The Odyssey and Spider-Man: Brand New Day.
The popularity of those films has reportedly led to the postponement or cancellation of several high-profile Chinese productions, including Three Kingdoms: The Beginning, a historical drama set in the third century.
Instead, some cinema-goers have reportedly chosen the homemade animation over the latest Spider-Man film, drawn by its reputation as an unexpected internet phenomenon.
The Bull-Market Connection
The movie’s title has also inspired a stream of stock-market jokes. Some viewers are supporting Niu Lai because they hope its association with a cow will bring good fortune to China’s markets.
In Chinese, the characters associated with “bull” and “cow” share the same character. A bull market refers to a sustained period of rising share prices driven by strong investor confidence and buying activity.
“If the index reaches 4,000 tomorrow I will go to the cinema to support this movie,” one Weibo user wrote.
Niu Lai has now crossed ¥140,000 (US$20,766) total box office — and today alone added over 130,000, a massive single-day jump from previous days’. https://t.co/NpLSZpkwEX pic.twitter.com/iSiRG65IQE
— Shanghai Daily (@shanghaidaily) August 15, 2026
“It is a terrible movie but has a great name,” another comment linking the movie to stock investments said.
The film’s sudden success has even attracted interest from investors, with some comparing its popularity to a buying frenzy — or joking that audiences are simply following the herd.
Cinemas Draw Their Own Posters
Niu Lai began with almost no publicity and did not even have a proper promotional poster. As demand increased, cinemas added more screenings and staff resorted to drawing their own posters to encourage audiences to attend.
“This record is unprecedented and will likely remain so,” a Weibo account dedicated to tracking movies noted.
However, not everyone has welcomed the film’s unexpected success. A commentary published by the state-owned Beijing News warned that cinemas risk “losing the trust” of viewers if they “continue to lower their standard” by scheduling additional screenings.
Mentioning previous films that had been mocked for poor quality, the commentary said Niu Lai has “once again lowered the bar for audiences’ expectations of poorly made films”.
China movie ‘NIU LAI’ PROJECTED to PULL 5.9 MILLION YUAN ($830,000) after GOING VIRAL for ‘ROUGH ANIMATION’
Would YOU watch THIS? pic.twitter.com/tVJVt0XMV4
— RT (@RT_com) August 15, 2026
It urged cinemas to “act as gatekeepers for the audience, and clearly reject films that are obviously not up to standard instead of letting films like Niu Lai run rampant”.
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For now, the backlash has only amplified interest in the film. What began as an obscure, low-budget animation has become a social-media-driven box-office story, powered by curiosity, irony and a growing appetite for something that feels unmistakably handmade.
