Thu Trang takes on Tran Thanh in a showdown.

The competition for Lunar New Year films in 2025 is becoming fierce as three prominent names—Tran Thanh, Thu Trang, and Nguyen Quang Dung—join the fray simultaneously.

Vietnamese cinema achieved a record in 2024 with total revenue. 1.9 trillion VND , an unprecedented box office achievement in history. Among them, the most notable are: Tomorrow by Tran Thanh ( 551 billion VND ). Launched at the same time as the Lunar New Year season. Mai , Meeting the pregnant woman again. (Director Nhat Trung) also earned nearly 93 billion.

According to estimates, with just the two aforementioned works, the revenue for the 2024 Lunar New Year season has already reached... 644 billion VND , accounting for 34% of the total annual revenue. This year's Tet holiday saw even more excitement in Vietnamese cinemas with the simultaneous release of three domestic films, namely: The Four Revengeful Spirits (Tran Thanh) Love mistake your best friend (Diep The Vinh/Nguyen Quang Dung) and Billion-dollar kiss (Thu Trang)

With the participation of big names, the race for the 2025 Lunar New Year film season has become more intense and fierce than ever before.

Thu Trang caught in a "pincer" situation.

Unlike in recent years, when the Lunar New Year box office race was heavily skewed towards one side, this year, all the contenders are receiving high expectations from both audiences and observers. Coincidentally, all three Lunar New Year films share a common denominator: comedy – a genre with great potential to attract audiences at the beginning of the year and easily appeal to a wide range of viewers.

Appearing on the race track for the third consecutive year, Tran Thanh brings... The Four Revengeful Ones. His previous films were mostly dramas, family films, or psychological thrillers. Comedy was just a secondary element.

The Four Revengeful Spirits Directed, written, and produced by Tran Thanh, the film features a cast of familiar names including Tran Thanh, Le Duong Bao Lam, Uyen An, and Le Giang. In addition, the film also includes some new faces such as Quoc Anh and two beauty queens, Ky Duyen and Tieu Vy.

The film revolves around the young couple Quoc Anh (Quoc Anh) and Quynh Vy (Tieu Vy). After dating for some time, they get married. However, trouble arises when Karen (Ky Duyen) appears. Furthermore, the lives of the young couple are turned upside down by Kieu (Uyen An), Aunt Bon (Le Giang), Uncle Muoi Mot (Tran Thanh)...

The four villains, Love Wrongly with a Best Friend, and The Billion Dollar Kiss all have their release dates set for January 29th.

Falling in love with the wrong best friend. Directed by the duo Nguyen Quang Dung and Diep The Vinh. Nguyen Quang Dung is the creator of blockbuster projects such as Beauty Trap, Blood Moon Feast Me and Trinh good Southern forest land. Meanwhile, Diep The Vinh is known for his role as director of photography. Godfather, Mai, You're my grandmother good I'm not yet eighteen ...

Falling in love with the wrong best friend. There are advantages to remaking a blockbuster. Friend Zone It once caused a sensation in Thailand, with revenue exceeding 210 million baht (approximately). (160 billion VND ). According to the original script, Kaity Nguyen will play a girl who has a boyfriend (Thanh Son), but is still secretly loved by her best friend (Ngoc Vang) since high school. The two have missed many opportunities to be together.

The final name to join the race for the Lunar New Year 2025 film season is... Billion-dollar kiss - Thu Trang's brainchild. She is a familiar face in the Vietnamese film industry, having participated in many successful projects such as Occupation Super Easy, The Billion Dollar Key, Sister Thirteen and Blood Moon Party ...

Billion-dollar kiss This marks Thu Trang's first time sitting in the director's chair. The film revolves around Vân (Thiên Ân), a bread vendor who accidentally encounters two men in a minor accident. The story then unfolds into the complications of a love triangle between them. It's clear that Thu Trang's brainchild is also based on a similar romantic motif. Falling in love with the wrong best friend. By Diep The Vinh/Nguyen Quang Dung.

Compared to its two rivals, Thu Trang's Lunar New Year film is at a disadvantage in that it lacks "box office stars." Most of the cast consists of young names like Le Xuan Tien, Ma Ran Do, or even Doan Thien An – the beauty queen who had a rather unremarkable debut in... Prince of Bac Lieu In early December.

However, Thu Trang's box office performance in the Year of the Snake wasn't entirely overshadowed. The names of Thu Trang and Tien Luat still held enough appeal to draw audiences to theaters. Thu Trang's previous projects, while not generating huge profits like those of Tran Thanh or Ly Hai, rarely resulted in losses. Meanwhile, Tien Luat recently participated in reality TV, receiving considerable attention.

Thu Trang is taking on the director's chair for the first time.

Understanding this advantage, recent promotional campaigns have been successful. Billion-dollar kiss It also revolves almost entirely around the director/producer duo Thu Trang and Tiến Luật, rather than the cast like the other two competitors.

Is it difficult for Tran Thanh to pull off a poker-style win?

Among the three contenders in the box office race in early 2025, The Four Revengeful Spirits Undoubtedly, this is the most promising name to win. Directed by Tran Thanh, a name that has dominated the Vietnamese box office during Tet holidays in recent years, the film could easily become his next "golden goose" after his previous successes. Mai, The Godfather good Mrs. Nu's house.

The Four Revengeful Spirits Witnessing Tran Thanh's return to comedy – the genre that made the artist famous – is a testament to his talent. With his strong grasp of audience preferences, Tran Thanh has the opportunity to showcase his creativity. Furthermore, the film brings together popular stars like Le Giang, two beauty queens, and especially Duong Bao Lam, making it highly likely to go viral – a crucial element for a long theatrical run. Another advantage is the film's lack of age restrictions for the audience.

Previously, Tran Thanh's earlier projects, despite constant controversies regarding their content or the fact that they only featured a cast of local actors, had undeniable appeal whenever they were released in theaters. If they succeed in breaking box office records... Tomorrow ( 551 billion VND ) The Four Revengeful Spirits This will be Tran Thanh's "poker" win in the film market.

However, realistically, the revenue milestone... 551 billion VND It's not easy to overcome. Especially in the context of this year's Lunar New Year, with many contenders joining the race, the box office market share is fragmented. It's impossible for Tran Thanh to have the entire revenue pie in his hands.

Kaity Nguyen and Ngoc Vang star in the film "Falling in Love with My Best Friend."

The second-place spot at the box office will likely be a fierce competition between... Falling in love with the wrong best friend. and A kiss worth billions. Both films share a similar thematic motif, so the outcome largely depends on their quality and the buzz they generate after release.

Notably, Tran Thanh also participated in investing and co-producing the film. Falling in love with the wrong person, my best friend . Earlier, appearing at the film's showcase, he stated that because he loved the original Thai work, felt it was a good script, and didn't want to miss out, he decided to invest. Thus, Tran Thanh now has two contenders in the box office race for the Lunar New Year of the Year of the Snake.

Falling in love with the wrong best friend. It has a higher potential for success thanks to its existing brand advantage. Not to mention, the presence of Kaity Nguyen also partly guarantees the appeal of the work.

While Billion-dollar kiss It seems to be quieter in terms of media coverage compared to its competitors. Even a month before its release, Thu Trang's brainchild still hasn't had any major promotional campaigns.

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