JANUARY 17, 2016 11:29pm PT by Patrick Brzeski
'Deadpool' Denied Release in China Due to Graphic Violence
'Deadpool' Joe Lederer/Twentieth Century Fox
of any title previewed at Comic Con last year — but China's censors have taken a far less enthusiastic view of the film.
According to widespread
,
Deadpool, which was produced by 20th Century Fox and based on the Marvel comic book character, has been denied permission to screen in China due to its violence, nudity and graphic language.
A source close to the decision at China Film Group tells
THR that the reports are indeed accurate.
Directed by Tim Miller and starring Ryan Reynolds as the most foul-mouthed and self-aware superhero — or, anti-hero — in the Marvel catalog,
Deadpool hits theaters stateside on Feb. 12.
China's censorship authorities often work with the Hollywood studios to create cleaned-up special cuts of R-rated movies, but sources close to the
Deadpool decision say it wasn't possible to excise the offending material without causing plot problems.
China has no ratings system, so the country's media regulator, the State Administration of Press, Publication, Radio, Film and Television (SAPPRFT), makes an up-down judgment on all film imports, approving or banning them for consumption by Chinese viewers of all ages.
Despite the film's more adult tone and content, many observers had predicted that
Deadpool would find a way into the China market, thanks to the Marvel imprimatur.
Movies based on Marvel comic books have done huge business in China, which is now the world's second-largest theatrical market.
Avengers: Age of Ultron grossed $240 million last summer, while more offbeat titles like
Guardians of the Galaxy and
Ant-Man grossed $96.4 million and $105.4 million, respectively.
Deadpool co-stars T.J. Miller, Morena Baccarin and Brianna Hildebrand. It tells the origin story of former Special Forces operative turned mercenary Wade Wilson (Reynolds), who after being subjected to a rogue experiment that leaves him with accelerated healing powers, adopts the alter ego Deadpool.
20th Century Fox declined to comment.
