China Bans Spider-Man Movie No Way Home, Requires Censorship

The Marvel comic Spider-Man: No Way Home is one of the most successful films in the world. However, since the theatrical release on December 15, Sony has had to do without an important market. The reason: Chinese authorities demand strict censorship of the Statue of Liberty.

With worldwide box-office receipts of nearly $1.9 billion, the latest Spider-Man blockbuster No Way Home currently ranks sixth in the top ten highest-grossing films of all time. The film starring Tom Holland, Zendaya, and Jacob Batalon alongside crossover actors Tobey Maguire (Spider-Man 1-3) and Andrew Garfield (The Amazing Spider-Man) could score even higher if the Chinese government or their media scrutiny doesn’t throw a spanner in the works. food throws in the works for Sony Pictures.

A thorn in the side of China: Peter Parker and the Statue of Liberty

After the first Spider-Man films with Tom Holland – Homecoming and Far From Home – grossed US$116 million and US$199 million in China, respectively, No Way Home could have easily broken the 2 billion mark. But the desired changes by the Chinese authorities went too far for Sony. The Statue of Liberty in New York, which is important at the end of the film, would have to be removed by Sony, otherwise, it would not be released in China, as colleagues from puck (Paywall) report.

Despite the prospect of projected sales of well over $200 million, Sony declined to make the changes. Sony also rejected the “compromise” from China that followed refusing to downsize the Statue of Liberty, crop patriotic photos of Tom Holland, and dim the monument’s lighting. In the US in particular, reports of censorship of this magnitude would have caused a shit storm. In addition, Sony was not guaranteed that the changes would lead to an actual release in China.