'Detective Chinatown 2' wraps up filming in New York

Detective Chinatown 2, the upcoming sequel of the titular franchise starring comedian Wang Baoqiang, recently concluded filming in New York.

The movie will open across the Chinese mainland on the first day of the 2018 Lunar New Year, which will fall on Feb 16.

Director Chen Sicheng revealed at a Beijing event Tuesday that the movie was shot in most of New York’s landmark locations, including Times Square, Fifth Avenue, Madison Avenue, New York Public Library, Grand Central Terminal and Brooklyn Bridge.

The production includes the return of Wang and actor Liu Haoran, as well as new participating stars such as director-actor Xiao Yang, Chinese Australian model-actress Natasha Liu Bordizzo and comedian Wang Xun.

Chen says he hopes to develop the franchise into a Chinese equivalent of the Sherlock Holmes series.

“We moved from Thailand (the filming location of the first movie) to New York, as the American city is full of immigrants, matching the script,” says Chen.

He reveals the new story will feature an international detective competition as well as a car chase scene in Times Square.

The first Detective Chinatown movie was a success, raking in nearly 830 million yuan ($125 million) at the box office in 2015.