Which film had a hotter opening day than Avatar in Hong Kong? 3D Sex and Zen: Extreme Ecstasy. And good news for ecstasy-seeking Westerners: The erotic comedy has secured US and Canadian distribution. 3D Sex and Zen: Extreme Ecstasy follows a sexually frustrated Chinese scholar who loses his way in the harem of a duke he befriends. The $3.5 million Cantonese-language production got off to a roaring start in Hong Kong, besting Avatar's opening-day there, and went on to post strong results in Taiwan, Australia, and New Zealand.
In Hong Kong, its latest gross was $4.9 million as of yesterday, making it the southern Chinese territory's most popular release so far this year, according to the film's publicist. It had also made $1.7 million in Taiwan, $1 million in South Korea, and another $1.2 million in Australia. The date and size of the North American release has not yet been decided. (More 3-D porn stories.)