FACT
Official records, public film listings, and checkable reporting come first; numerical claims retain their publication time.
SOURCES & METHOD
Every key claim should lead back to a source.
These are the main public records used for film facts and the timeline; the written analysis is independently produced by this guide.
REPORTED VIEW
Opinions from outlets or interviewees remain attributed and are not rewritten as this site's factual conclusions.
OUR ANALYSIS
Interpretation of virality, viewing advice, and number-reading are original analysis and stay separate from news summaries.
China Film Box Office (checked 27 Sep)Film detail lists RMB 63.8433M cumulative; no exact update time, not a closing or final total↗Beijing News / Sina (16 Sep)Reports cumulative gross above RMB 63M as of 15 Sep↗GamerSky (1 Sep, 20:40)Citing Dengta Pro: cumulative gross above RMB 60M↗Maoyan Pro live box office (27 Aug, 20:10:52 CST)RMB 52.820M cumulative and RMB 1.5954M for the day, including service fees (realised snapshot, not a forecast)↗Maoyan Pro live box office (26 Aug, 21:32:04 CST)RMB 51.178M cumulative and RMB 1.9169M for the day, including service fees (realised snapshot, not a forecast)↗JRJ.com.cn (26 Aug, 13:19 CST)Gross passing RMB 50M with 1.798M admissions; Maoyan forecast above RMB 64M; revenue figure is a media estimate↗Maoyan Pro live box office (26 Aug, 12:10:18 CST)RMB 50.189M cumulative and RMB 928.9K for the day, including service fees (realised snapshot, not a forecast)↗Pedaily / Sina Finance (26 Aug, 08:03 CST)Citing Dengta Pro on the audience around Niulai: male, tier-one/two-city and solo-viewing traits; data through 24 Aug, 08:00 CST↗Sina Entertainment / Metropolitan Live (25 Aug, 12:29 CST)RMB 47.871M cumulative with 1.722M admissions; Maoyan forecasts RMB 62.605M for the mainland run (a forecast)↗Sina (24 Aug, 22:37 CST)Douban rising to 6.0; RMB 47.03M cumulative and RMB 2.4973M on the day; the RMB 62.6M mainland final is a forecast↗JRJ.com.cn (24 Aug, 16:56 CST)Cumulative gross passing RMB 46M with 1.5M+ admissions; the team says a next film 'Yang Gao' is in preparation↗Sohu account 'Yang Xiaokang' (25 Aug, 14:21 CST)Self-media claim that Niulai has taken consecutive daily box-office crowns, briefly ahead of a Shen Teng comedy and a Nolan sci-fi title (commentary, not a box-office figure)↗Sohu account (25 Aug, 14:23 CST, relaying commentator Xiao Lei)Commentator Xiao Lei says Niulai could reach RMB 500M if it meets no resistance (a personal forecast, not realised gross)↗Gamersky (24 Aug, 15:31 CST)Citing Maoyan Pro: RMB 46.282M cumulative, above Evangelion: 3.0+1.0's cited RMB 44.290M mainland-China gross↗Caixin (24 Aug, 10:32 CST)An earlier same-day Niulai snapshot plus nationwide weekly box office of RMB 1.475B for 17–23 August, down 1.8%↗NetEase account (24 Aug)Total gross passing RMB 45M; Maoyan forecast raised to RMB 120M (a forecast); audience profile is the outlet's own claim↗Lianhe Zaobao / Gamersky (23 Aug evening)Cumulative gross topping RMB 42M with 1.5M+ admissions; filmmakers confirm next film 'Yang Gao'↗Guancha.cn (23 Aug)Citing Maoyan Pro: RMB 41.55M by mid-morning 23 August with a RMB 57.665M forecast; plus the director interview (five years, no AI, gear bought on Xianyu)↗Jingwei (23 Aug repost)Dengta Pro: total gross crossing RMB 40M by 23:16 CST on 22 August↗Jiemian (21 Aug)Citing Dengta Pro: RMB 34.178M cumulative as of 21 August↗Sohu (21 Aug)Hong Kong's Broadway Cinematheque says a release is 'being discussed'; Hong Kong audiences travelling to Shenzhen and Singapore as the first overseas stop are covered↗ZAKER News (21 Aug)Reported claim that Niulai tops film-history return-on-investment rankings (the report's calculation, not this guide's)↗Sohu News (21 Aug, 14:02 CST)Total gross passing RMB 33M by 11:00 CST on 21 August with Maoyan interest near 200K, plus the finding that the director promoted via WeChat posts since 1 August↗Phoenix News (21 Aug, 12:28 CST)RMB 30.581M cumulative on 20 August (Maoyan scope), a Maoyan forecast near RMB 59.93M, and an after-tax director estimate near RMB 10M based on that forecast↗China Film AdministrationOfficial animation release-permit record for Niulai (2024-33)↗MaoyanNiulai film listing: runtime, release date, and credits↗Ziniu NewsReport on Niulai's early box office and sudden attention↗Caiwen News (14 Aug)A 10-day RMB 7,711 / 278-admission snapshot and city-screening check↗Guangzhou Daily / DayooCoverage of the film's reverse-viral attention↗National Business DailyAn editorial investigation into Niulai↗Caiwen reposting Jiupai News (16 Aug)RMB 2.567M that morning; RMB 5.98M and RMB 18.37M were forecasts; also reports a Dalian cinema's proposed removal↗JRJ (17 Aug)Reported RMB 9.46M snapshot; the figure above RMB 89M was a platform forecast↗NetEase account (21 Aug, 00:26 CST)Cumulative gross passing RMB 31.80M at the 20 August close, about RMB 4.27M on the day; the RMB 62.2M forecast total is a forecast↗Dengta Pro (20 Aug, 14:06) · Wallstreetcn flashNiulai crossing RMB 30M by 14:06 CST on 20 August↗Blue Whale News (20 Aug)Crossing RMB 30M with distributor revenue above RMB 10M; the 18 Aug 16:38 RMB 20M crossing, RMB 342 opening day, and an RMB 69.431M AI forecast are noted as a forecast↗1905.com (20 Aug)Coverage of the RMB 135M platform forecast, full Shanghai screenings, and the viewing phenomenon↗Xixi Says / Sohu (21 Aug)Maoyan forecast retreating to about RMB 60M and a distributor-revenue estimate near RMB 22M (both forecast and estimates)↗Maoyan Pro (20 Aug, 11:45:12 CST)RMB 29.370M cumulative gross and RMB 1.8364M for the day, both including service fees↗Maoyan Pro (19 Aug, 20:48:45 CST)RMB 27.211M cumulative gross and RMB 5.3187M for today, both including service fees↗Associated Press (18 Aug)International coverage tracing the rise from roughly RMB 10K in ten days to about RMB 17.1M, with audience interviews↗Hong Kong China News Agency (18 Aug)Report of cumulative gross above RMB 17.7M by morning, with the film's five-year mother-and-child production background↗Fadu Law (17 Aug)Several Dalian cinemas restore screenings; other cities had continued showing the film↗iDarkHorse (17 Aug)Distributor response on the film's theatrical release↗Phoenix Finance (16 Aug)Box office above RMB 5.5M and entry into the annual domestic-animation top ten↗Tencent News (16 Aug)Snapshot of cumulative gross including presales passing RMB 3M↗NetEase-hosted coverage (14 Aug)Early report citing RMB 7,705 after 10 days; shown alongside other dated snapshots, not as live box office↗Public discussion (not a news source)Conflicting 17 August claims about removal; used only to explain why this guide does not report the rumour as fact↗
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Original visual register
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