China box-office record breaker Monster Hunt 'manipulated figures'

Official figures claimed that the homegrown fantasy beat Furious 7 in China, but reports suggest the audience tally was artificially inflated

China's highest grossing film ever, the CGI fantasy film Monster Hunt, has been accused of manipulating its box-office figures in its bid to break records in the country's rapidly swelling movie market.

Following suspicions voiced on the internet by filmgoers, Chinese state broadcaster CCTV recently speculated that Monster Hunt achieved the feat by artificially boosting ticket sales, according to the Financial Times.