[The Epoch Times, May 3, 2022](The Epoch Times reporter Lin Yan from New York) Several foreign media reported that the American Marvel movie “Doctor Strange 2: Out of Control Multiverse” (Doctor Strange in the Multiverse of Madness) officially Banned from broadcast in mainland China, or related to the image of the Epoch Times yellow newspaper box in the movie trailer.
According to the latest trailer for Doctor Strange 2, Benedict Cumberbatch (Benedict Cumberbatch) who plays Doctor Strange is battling the octopus monster (Gargantos) on the streets of New York, and the Epoch Times “The newspaper box stands on the corner of the road, and you can clearly see the five words of “The Epoch Times” and the two lines of small characters on the back of the newspaper box, “The great changes in history are in front of us, and the truth is Epoch Times.”
The Epoch Times, headquartered in New York, is an international, multilingual newspaper and media company. The Epoch Times has 13 newspaper offices in the United States, and its iconic yellow newspaper boxes are distributed in major cities, especially in Chinese areas.
Canadian media outlet Comic Book Resources (CBR) reports that Chinese box office analyst and journalist Oliver Chen has confirmed that the long-awaited Doctor Strange 2 has been officially banned by Beijing.
The report said that although the official did not explain the reason, there are several problems or related to it. One is the Epoch Times newspaper box. Another is that Beijing has cracked down on entertainment and fan culture since early 2021, ordering to regulate or ban the activities of video games, idol dramas, and film and television stars with huge fan bases.
The CCP seems to be very sensitive to the Epoch Times newspaper box. Deadline, an online Hollywood magazine, reported on Monday (May 2) that for industry insiders, they focus on the action and story in the footage, “but for some people who are digging into every inch of detail, that’s obviously not the case.” .
“As far as we know, Doctor Strange 2 has been submitted to the Chinese authorities for review and has not been rejected or approved for distribution,” the report said.
Entertainment website Fandomwire reported: “We may never know (the Epoch Times box footage) whether this is the official (banned) reason, because the Chinese authorities are notoriously elusive.”
However, “the two can be combined with little effort. This is likely the reason why our Chinese friends can’t see Doctor Strange 2,” the report said.
Foreign media pay attention to the CCP’s control of ideology through the box office
Doctor Strange 2 had high hopes, with the first film earning $109 million in China, but not a single Marvel character-themed movie has been approved in China since The Avengers show.
CBR said that while the CCP officially gives foreign films a nominal quota of 34 films per year, the CCP continues to promote nationalism and demand propaganda of the party’s values. This means that Beijing wants to reduce the culture and message of foreign films, and it naturally bears the brunt of cutting Hollywood blockbusters.
Regarding Doctor Mutation 2, the English-language website of Global Times, a national tabloid under the CCP’s official media People’s Daily, threatened the American blockbuster on May 1: “After all, in the Chinese market, this is just one more or one less. an American film.”
“Zhongqing Online” also reprinted an article criticizing “Dr. Mutation 2”, saying that letting the Epoch Times newspaper box into the mirror is “ideological oppression and export.”
During the Chinese New Year, many Hollywood movies were not released in China, such as “Black Widow”, “Shang Qi and the Legend of the Ten Rings”, “Venom 2: Blood Spider”, “The Eternals” and the latest banned “The Legend of the Ten Rings” Spider-Man: Homeless Day.
Spider-Man: Homeless Day had little controversy before it was banned, and it wasn’t even a Disney release, but it didn’t end up getting the chance to release in China in January 2022.
Some foreign media reported that one of the reasons why Chinese officials objected to the film was that the Statue of Liberty was highlighted in the film, saying that the Statue of Liberty played too important a role in the climax of the film.
Chinese officials asked studio Sony to remove the Statue of Liberty, but after the studio refused, Spider-Man could not be staged simultaneously in mainland China.
Despite the absence of the Chinese market, Spider-Man: Homeless Day did well on its release day, with CBR reporting at the time, “The days when Hollywood films went out of their way to curry favor with the Chinese Communist Party must come to an end, and they can do without Chinese censors. success.
“Complex stories, cultural presentations, and general themes should come from the creators, not the censors.”
Netizens: CCP fears Marvel’s huge fan base
A western netizen, The PaddyDukes, analyzed on the Deadline website that Marvel movies have a huge cultural influence on a global scale.
In the eyes of the CCP, Marvel movies are seen as actively promoting Western values and a form of American soft power.
“A large fan base of this size – espousing and supporting movies and TV shows with values diametrically opposed to the Chinese Communist Party – is seen as a risk to the party’s influence, especially among young people who enjoy these films, who Not necessarily positive sentiment towards their government,” the netizen wrote.
That risk, he argues, is particularly acute in a Marvel movie like Shang Qi, where most of the cast is Chinese and half of the dialogue in the film is in Mandarin.
“This is a small part of (the CCP’s) larger political strategy, which is to block anything that has the support of huge local fans and can transfer power and influence away from the CCP,” the netizen said.
The netizen said that both the Epoch Times newspaper box and Zhao Ting, who won the Golden Globe Award for Best Director, are just a “convenient scapegoat” for the CCP to stop Marvel movies.
“It’s all just fodder used by party loyalists to fan the flames on social media in order to appear to have a little public support for Marvel’s shady side,” he said.
Multiple Epoch Times newspaper boxes at Marvel locations were defaced overnight
The New York publisher of The Epoch Times found on May 2 that a total of 44 Epoch Times newspaper boxes in 28 locations in Manhattan’s Chinatown had been graffitied with uniform words and patterns overnight. The Epoch Times has called the police.
Huang Wanqing, deputy editor-in-chief of The Epoch Times, said that the trailer for the Marvel movie released on April 29 featured footage of the Epoch Times newspaper box in Manhattan’s Chinatown. The CCP banned the film from entering the Chinese market, and the Epoch Times newspaper box was hacked. Area smearing may also be related to this.
He said that the newspaper boxes of The Epoch Times are distributed in the streets and alleys of New York City, especially in the Chinese community. This is a street scene that New Yorkers are familiar with and accustomed to. The CCP’s response shows that the Epoch Times has a huge influence. , the CCP is very afraid of The Epoch Times, which spreads the truth and exposes its lies.
He said that The Epoch Times will continue to pay attention to the graffiti on the newspaper boxes, and will work closely with the New York City Police Department to solve the case as soon as possible. Readers are welcome to report those who vandalize the newspaper boxes to the newspaper, and the newspaper will continue to report the relevant situation to the police and the FBI. .
Responsible editor: Ye Ziwei#