Japanese Movie Releases Reportedly Postponed in China

Beijing, Nov. 17 (Jiji Press)–At least two Japanese movie releases have been postponed in China amid tensions over Japanese Prime Minister Sanae Takaichi’s remarks on a potential Taiwan contingency, according to Chinese media reports on Monday. The two movies–“Crayon Shin-chan the Movie: Super Hot! The Spicy Kasukabe Dancers” and “Cells at Work!”–were scheduled for release on Dec. 6 and Nov. 22, respectively. Their new release dates in China are not yet known. In China, the first chapter of the “Demon Slayer: Kimetsu no Yaiba The Movie: Infinity Castle” trilogy was released on Friday, and it earned nearly 400 million Chinese yuan at the box office in just four days. However, boycotts of Japanese movies may spread in the country. Around 2016, the administration of Chinese President Xi Jinping restricted South Korean pop culture content in China in retaliation for the deployment of the Terminal High Altitude Area Defense, or THAAD, missile defense system at a U.S. base in South Korea. This restriction is said to still continue. Meanwhile, group tours to Japan have also been canceled in China. A travel agency in Beijing said that many trips have been scrapped after authorities urged people to avoid traveling to Japan. END [Copyright The Jiji Press, Ltd.]