The studios announced the Chinese release of “Black Panther: Wakanda Forever” on February 7 and their latest production “Ant-Man and the Wasp: Quantumania” on February 17.
After almost four years of absence, Marvel films will return to cinemas in China, the American studio announced to the delight of Chinese fans of the franchise on Wednesday.
Marvel superhero movies, hugely popular in the Asian country, have been absent from theaters since the July 2019 release of Spider-Man: Far from Home.
China only authorizes the theatrical release of a few dozen foreign feature films each year. In the hope of obtaining authorization in the huge Chinese market, Hollywood studios sometimes take it upon themselves to cut certain scenes considered too violent, too bare, disturbing or deemed politically sensitive by the authorities.
“I missed the Marvel universe so much”
Marvel Studios, owned by the American giant Disney, announced on Tuesday the release in China on February 7 of Black Panther: Wakanda Forever. It will be followed 10 days later by its last production Ant-Man and the Wasp: Quantumaniasaid Marvel on the Weibo social network.
“It’s hard to believe […] I missed the Marvel universe so much”, commented a user on Wednesday.
Now, “will they (also) release the other six Marvel movies” that have not been screened in China, wondered another.
Cinemas, like other entertainment venues, were among the first to close in China during the Covid-19 outbreak. The rooms were then able to reopen but with a drastic limitation of the number of spectators to avoid contamination. A situation that did not encourage the Chinese to go to the cinemas.
The lifting of most health restrictions in China last month marks a gradual return to normalcy in the country. Ant-Man and the Wasp: Quantumania will be released in Chinese theaters on the same day as in the United States, February 17.
