Successor (2024 film)

Successor
Theatrical release poster
Traditional Chinese	抓娃娃
Simplified Chinese	抓娃娃
Directed by	Yan Fei Peng Damo
Written by	Yan Fei Peng Damo Lin Bingbao
Produced by	Zhang Lebin
Starring	Shen Teng Ma Li
Cinematography	Sun Ming
Edited by	Zhou Xiaolin
Music by	Peng Fei
Production companies	Haikou Xihong Hutong Film and Television Wanda Film and Television Media Tianjin Maoyan Microfilm Media Zhejiang Kaixin Mahua Film Shanghai Ruyi Film Production Beijing Alibaba Film Horgos Lianrui Film China Film Co., Ltd.
Distributed by	Wanda Film and Television Media Tianjin Maoyan Microfilm Media Haikou Xihong Hutong Film and Television China Film Co., Ltd
Release date	July 16, 2024 (2024-07-16)
Running time	133 minutes
Country	China
Language	Mandarin
Box office	$469.6 million[1][2]

Successor (Chinese: 抓娃娃; pinyin: Zhuā wáwá) is a 2024 Chinese comedy drama film co-directed by Yan Fei and Peng Damo, starring Shen Teng and Ma Li. The film tells the story of a wealthy couple, Ma Chenggang and his wife Chunlan, who decide to conceal their true wealth and start a reverse child-rearing journey in order to train their son Ma Jiye to be a capable family successor.^[3] Successor was released on July 16, 2024.^[4]

Ma Chenggang, a wealthy man in Xihong City, worries that his eldest son is too spoiled to succeed him. Determined to raise a capable successor, he turns his focus to his younger son, Ma Jiye, born to his second wife, Chunlan. To prevent Jiye from indulging in a luxurious life and losing the motivation to strive, Chenggang and Chunlan take an unconventional approach. They conceal their wealth, moving the family to a dilapidated neighborhood where Ma Chenggang grew up. They maintain an illusion of poverty, so that Jiye could develop qualities such as hard work, knowledge, careful budgeting, physical fitness, and perseverance.

• Shen Teng as Ma Chenggang^[4]
• Ma Li as Chunlan^[4]
• Shi Pengyuan as Ma Jiye
  • Xiao Bochen as young Ma Jiye
• Sa Rina as Grandma / Teacher Li
• Zhang Zidong as Ma Dajun
• Jia Bing as President Jia
• Wei Xiang as Mr. Wei
• Li Jiaqi as Zhang Feifei

Successor was released on July 16, 2024 in China. Internationally the film was released by CMC Pictures, starting on August 2, 2024.^[5] On October 1, 2024, after earning 3.226 billion yuan at the box office, the top 2024 summer movie, "Successor ",^[6] started online broadcasting. It was launched on video platforms such as iQiyi, Tencent Video, and Youku.^{[citation needed]} On September 25, the film was scheduled to be broadcast online and aired on Tencent Video on September 30.^{[citation needed]}

On June 15, 2024, the film released a release poster and announced that it would be released nationwide on July 18.^[7] On June 27, the film released a trailer.^[8] On July 2, the film was officially announced to be released in China on July 16.^[9] On July 8, the film released a "full harvest" trailer. On the same day, the film released posters in CINITY, IMAX, China Giant Screen, and Dolby Cinema formats.^[10] On August 7, the film announced an extension on its release to September 15,^[11] and again on September 5 extending its release to October 15.^[12]

As of October 28, 2024, Successor has received a rating of more than 8.0 on Douban, with a box office of $3.25 billion yuan.^[13]It is currently the ninth highest-grossing film of 2024.^[14]

“For many viewers, the purpose of going to the cinema to watch comedy movies is to relieve stress and relax. "Successor" is successful in this aspect. Most of the film is set up with dense jokes to amuse the audience, and the actors' own funny characteristics and performance skills magnify the overall comedy effect of the film. On the other hand, the core of "Successor“ is more serious than "Hello Mr. Billionaire" and "Goodbye Mr. Loser". It puts the real-life behavior of parents controlling their children's lives in the name of love in an extreme situation to highlight the horror of this kind of panoramic surveillance and kidnapping-style education, and to reflect on whether the deliberately created "frustration education" and "hardship education" can really help children grow. This is a film that makes your back cold after you laugh. It has the intention of satire, but it is not carried through to the end.Therefore, many viewers, based on their own experiences, have suggested that watching the film is a cruel process from laughter to calmness, and then to silence and pain.” (Cited from the First Financial Review)^[15]

From the film's composition and artistic style, the use of colors and the choice of music are just right. The bright colors and brisk music add a lot of vitality to the film, especially when showing the family gathering scene, giving people a warm and lively feeling. The director perfectly combines humor and emotion to create a relaxed and pleasant viewing atmosphere without losing the need for thinking. While laughing, the audience subtly absorbs the deep humanistic care conveyed by the film.^[16]

"Successor" delves into the tragedy hidden behind comedy, and shows the complex entanglement between family affection, education and personal growth in an almost cruel way. Through the extreme educational experiment of the protagonist Ma Chenggang, the film reveals the profound impact of manipulation and deception in the name of love on the next generation.”^[17](Cited from The Paper Comment)

The most terrifying part of "Successor" is that Ma Jiye's growth process is a complete educational experiment, where his father molds him into the shape he wants like playing with clay.Its greatest success lies in that it captures the two major topics of views on money and views on education, which can arouse widespread discussion and resonance at the moment.^[18]

• List of Chinese films of 2024

• Successor at IMDb