2026-07-26
Dear You Overseas Release Dates
Dear You began its first announced overseas wave on June 18, 2026, in Hong Kong, Macau, Singapore, Malaysia and Brunei. A second wave followed on June 25 in Australia, New Zealand, the United States and Canada, then on June 26 in the United Kingdom and Ireland; Japan was listed for July 2. Malaysia supplied an early audience signal, with the film reaching RM8.2 million after eight days. These are territory-by-territory cinema dates, separate from the mainland film-key extensions that govern screenings inside mainland China.
The June 18 first wave
The first announced overseas wave opened on June 18 in Hong Kong, Macau, Singapore, Malaysia and Brunei. It followed the April 30 mainland release by seven weeks, keeping the film close to the same conversation rather than holding it for a distant later season. For viewers in those markets, this was the first practical chance to see the Chaoshan-language family story in a local commercial cinema.
Those five markets also fit the film's emotional geography. Dear You is built around qiaopi letters, migration through Southeast Asia and the ties between a Chaoshan home and relatives abroad. The rollout did not make dialect disappear; it placed the film where many viewers already understand how a family story can move across languages, ports and generations.
The June 25 and 26 second wave
The second announced wave was no longer a future plan by late July. Australia, New Zealand, the United States and Canada were dated for June 25, while the United Kingdom and Ireland followed on June 26. Japan was listed for July 2. Reading the schedule by wave prevents an old announcement from being mistaken for a current promise that those markets are still waiting to open.
The dates also show how the release widened. The first wave concentrated on Hong Kong, Macau and Southeast Asia; the second moved into Oceania, North America, Britain, Ireland and Japan. Local cinemas still control exact sessions, so a country-level release date does not guarantee that every city or venue will keep the film for the same number of weeks.
Malaysia's early audience response
Malaysia provided one of the clearest early measurements. Eight days after opening, the film had reached RM8.2 million, and the director and lead actors continued meeting audiences there. That result matters because it records more than an announced date: viewers actually bought tickets quickly enough for the film to stand out in its Southeast Asian run.
The response also fits the subject without reducing it to ancestry alone. Qiaopi, Teochew speech and memories of relatives across the sea may give some viewers a direct family connection, but the film still has to work as a drama. The Malaysian result suggests that its waiting, misunderstanding and reconciliation travelled with the cultural details rather than being blocked by them.
How to read the schedule now
Overseas cinema dates should be checked market by market. A mainland film-key extension does not automatically extend a cinema run in Hong Kong, Malaysia, Canada or Britain, and an overseas opening date does not describe how long mainland cinemas may screen the film. These are related parts of one release, but they are not one shared deadline.
By July 25, the film was also announced for the Taoyuan Film Festival in Taiwan, another example of a dated local event rather than a universal release window. Viewers looking for a screening should therefore start with the distributor or cinema in their own city, using the announced waves as a map of where the film has already travelled.