Asterix & Obelix: The Middle Kingdom (2023) on Netflix
NR20231h 52mAdventureComedyFamily
Princess Fu Yi flees a rogue prince in China and reaches a Gaulish village. Asterix, Obelix, and their companions set out to help her save the Empress from the prince's rebellion.
- Netflix2.4/5
- IMDb5.1/1013,990 votes
- Rotten Tomatoes44%
Trailer
Plot summary
Gaul in 50 BC is held by Rome except for one village that resists the legions. Asterix is uneasy about relying so heavily on the magic potion that keeps the Gauls safe. Far away, Princess Fu Yi, daughter of the Chinese Empress, escapes Prince Deng Tsin Qin and travels west with her coach driver Graindemais and her bodyguard Tat Han. The Emperor has died, rival princes want the throne, and Deng demands taxes from his own territory. The Empress turns to the trader Epidemais, who claims to be from Gaul, and asks him to take Fu Yi away from China. When Fu Yi reaches the Gaulish village, Vitalstatistix refuses to send help because China lies too far away. Asterix, drawn to Fu Yi, volunteers to go, and Obelix chooses to accompany him.
Cast
Did you know?!Facts and trivia about Asterix & Obelix: The Middle Kingdom (2023)
Can contain spoilers, watch the movie first.
- Production was halted on 18 February 2020 by the COVID-19 pandemic, and in December 2020 co-star Gilles Lellouche said the film would not be shot in China, mainly for political reasons.
- It was the first live-action Asterix film not based on any of the comic albums, and the first in the series not to star Gérard Depardieu as Obelix.
- Gérard Depardieu had played Obelix in every previous live-action Asterix film and was co-creator Albert Uderzo's preferred actor for the part; when Gilles Lellouche took the role, Depardieu said he was not disappointed as he does not have a monopoly on it.
- Producer Alain Attal said he and director Guillaume Canet travelled to China with French President Emmanuel Macron to present the project to Chinese authorities and win permission to film, co-produce and release it there.
