BEIJING, Dec. 5 (Xinhua) -- "Bumblebee," a spin-off of the Transformer film-series, is scheduled for release in China on Jan. 4, according to Tencent Pictures.
Tencent Pictures, a subsidiary of Chinese tech giant Tencent, said it was the first time that it joined hands with Paramount Pictures in film production.
As the sixth installment and a prequel to the Transformers series, "Bumblebee" will take the audience back to the year 1987 when the whole adventure began, and present the origin story of Bumblebee, the main character.
Expectations are high for the film's box office performance in China. The last Transformers series movie "Transformers: the Last Knight," grossed a total of 1.34 billion yuan (145.8 million U.S. dollars) in 10 days after its release in China. Its total box office in China also exceeded its sales in North America.
Apart from the Transformers franchise, Tencent Pictures has participated in the marketing and release of the recent blockbuster "Venom" in China and will play a part in the production of the new "Top Gun" sequel, it said.
