“Ne Zha 2” (Original title: Nezha: Mo tong nao hai, 2025) manages to be grand without losing its heart. It’s an intricately plotted film, which has become increasingly rare for a mainstream blockbuster in recent years. The film reintroduces Chinese mythological characters through a thematically complex narrative, which analyses everything from loss, grief, and existential dread without losing its broad humor and visual richness. It’s vivid and colorful, and tonally varied in ways that live-action movies aspire to be. Yet, it leaves you with plenty to mull over about its exploration of virtue and evil. There are well-designed action set-pieces that will make you catch your breath, but there’s also a resonating story about a young character trying to prove his worth.
The earlier film followed Nezha as he learned the truth about his identity and destiny, only to be inspired to rewrite it. He realized the value of goodness from his kind-hearted parents and an unlikely friendship with Dragon Prince Ao Bing. It followed both him and Ao Bing battling the preconceived notions against their respective identities, leading to a truce. The recent sequel further addressed the values that connected them, despite their inherent distinctions. To reach that familiar moral lesson, it showed them being swept into a whirlwind where they experience loss and betrayal while trying to balance their duties to those they hold dear.
Spoilers Ahead
Ne Zha 2 (Nezha: Mo tong nao hai, 2025) Plot Summary & Movie Synopsis:
“Ne Zha 2,” directed by Yu Yang, shows Nezha and Ao Bing hoping to start new lives as foes-turned-friends. Little do they know the troubles it would lead them to as they try to protect those they love.
What happens in Ne Zha 2?
The sequel picks up right where the first film left us. It begins shortly after the climactic fight against Immortal Shen Gongbao. That’s when Ao Bing joins forces with Nezha in a bid to protect him against the lightning strike, which was supposed to end his life three years after being born from the Demon Orb.
Unfortunately, neither could survive. Still, Immortal Taiyi Zhenren kept their souls intact with the Sacred Lotus. Now, he regenerates them through a mold, allowing their souls to find a form to operate. However, their mutual journey quickly comes to a halt when Ao Bing’s father, the Dragon King of the East, Ao Guang, wages a war against Nezha’s native Chentang Pass, believing his son is dead.
Ao Bing takes it upon himself to protect the people of Chentang Pass, due to a change of heart from the time he spent with Nezha and his family. Sadly, his newly formed body doesn’t survive his father’s (and other Dragon Kings’) vicious attack. Still, in his case, life finds a way. Taiyi comes to his rescue, once again, by helping him and Nezha share a body. It’s how they both can co-exist in the same form, at least, for seven days.
In those days, they must obtain an elixir from the Yu Xu Palace. It’s the only way Ao Bing can sustain his life. Until that happens, he and Nezha will need to be at peace with each other. It’s challenging since, though friends, they have nearly opposite personalities.
Nezha can rarely hide his appearance and is rather mischievous, as opposed to Ao Bing. So, in situations where it matters, Ao Bing takes charge of the body. It still looks like Nezha, and not like a Dragon. Together, they can ensure that the Gods do not let their predispositions against either demons or dragons get in the way of their goals.
What are Immortal Wuliang’s true motives?
Taiyi Zhenren brings Nezha to Immortal Wuliang’s palace, presenting him as Ao Bing. It doesn’t take Nezha long to show his mischievous self. Yet, he is not the only one putting on fake appearances. Wuliang hides his nefarious motives to get hold of everything required to sustain his immortal life. He appears kind and humane, but underneath, he uses other people to get what he wants. Nezha and Taiyi Zhenren see only one side of him and thus believe that to be the whole truth. They also seem to be in a quest for immortality, which the elixir is said to provide. That’s how he manages to convince Wuliang to enter the related trials, which are otherwise performed by demon hunters.
Nezha consumes sleeping pills so that Ao Bing can enter a fight against the mormot demons and win. They soon come face to face with the Golden Immortals, shortly before a once-in-a-decade situation when the stars align. Their union introduces two points: they consider Wuliang a selfless and sacrificing entity, but they find dragons harmful. Upon hearing that, Nezha fears that his demonic roots will keep him away from reaching their goals. Ao Bing supports him to get out of that emotional chaos. He then leads to the next level in Ascention Falls to learn from a master. Ao Bing helps him in cultivating the required skills.
In a fight against this master, Nezha wins, while the master leaves with a broken arm. This master happens to be the Shen family patriarch, who fathered Shen Gongbao and his younger brother, a leopard demon, Shen Xiaobao. The latter of them witnesses Nezha defeating his father, which fills him with a tragic sense of loss. Shen Xiaobao doesn’t know that Ao Bing inhabited that body while fighting, and that his father accepted the defeat to turn to the good side. He returns to his brother, Shen Gongbao, to inform him about this loss. Shen Gongbao consults Wuliang about it, only to realize Wuliang’s destructive plans, which include burning down Chentang Pass to ensure Heavenly Sect’s domination.
Ne Zha 2 (Nezha: Mo tong nao hai, 2025) Movie Ending Explained:
Does Nezha defeat Wuliang and reconcile with Ao Bing?
After a fight against Shen Zhengdao, Nezha returns home to see his home burned to dust. He cannot find his parents or his loved ones. Overcome by intense grief, he parts ways with Ao Bing, who insists that he isn’t behind it.
However, Nezha’s anger is so potent that it drives him to extreme lengths, including cutting ties with Ao Bing. He grows resentful of dragons, and Wuliang uses that anger to fulfill his mission against the dragons’ Sect. It leads him to help Wuliang trap the dragons in a giant cauldron. After that, Nezha’s parents, Li Jing and Lady Yin, meet him and reveal that Shen Zhengdao isn’t behind the destruction of their home.
Shen Zhengdao even protected Nezha’s family because he believed he had nothing else worth fighting for. It happens after Shen Zhengdao realizes how other dragon kings were helping Wuliang in his cruel plans, including burning down Chentang Pass. Wuliang used everyone he came across for his plans of domination and immortality.
After realizing this, Nezha joins forces with Ao Bing (who, by then, gets restored in a body with Taiyi Zhenren’s help) in a common fight against Wuliang. The immortal traps them in a cauldron and uses Nezha’s innocence against him. He says that his parents will die if he doesn’t do as told.
Toward the end, Lady Yin sacrifices herself as Nezha gets reborn with the fire to his full form. Their collective forces manage to smash the cauldron into pieces, putting an end to Wuliang’s plans, for the time being. The dragons go into hiding, but Ao Bing stays back to help Nezha in their plans to expose Wulian. As a result, much like the last time, the two evolve, reconcile, and get back together in this coming-of-age tale.
What happens in the mid-credits scene, and will there be Ne Zha 3?
After retreating, Wuliang enters a place where Shen Gongbao is trapped. He thinks that Shen Gongbao will help him with his deal to use his demon powers in a war. That’s when Shen Gongbao sees his father trapped nearby. We don’t see him accepting the deal, but we do see Wuliang getting trapped inside the same prison with his disciples. He also put a curse on the guard, which inadvertently keeps him trapped inside with his two disciples. As it happens, Jinzha and Muzha, Nezha’s brothers, arrive at Wuliang’s palace to meet him, only to realize that he’s nowhere to be seen. We’ll likely see the further story in “Ne Zha 3,” which is expected to release in a few years.
Ne Zha 2 (Nezha: Mo tong nao hai, 2025) Themes of Good vs Evil, Analyzed
Although yet another blockbuster exploring the ‘good vs evil’ theme, “Ne Zha 2” is more in line with the kind of battle that Jon M. Chu’s “Wicked” leaned heavily into, while James Gunn’s “Superman” is hinted at. It’s about a fight for the socially vulnerable, led by someone who has been prejudiced against but holds a significant amount of power or knowledge. It’s also against an entity that is either hungry for power, privilege, or certain status.
In this case, it’s Nezha fighting for the rights of others despite the biases against demons. It’s also about Ao Bing fighting alongside, despite the biases against dragons or his predestined motives against Nezha. They rise above the biases against their identities, while ensuring their power doesn’t go to waste. Instead, it gets utilized for something far more crucial and innately humane.
