After years of prostrating itself before Communist China, Hollywood is now reaping the results of its Faustian bargain. China is blocking more and more Hollywood blockbusters from domestic screens, including major Marvel and Pixar titles that depend heavily on foreign audiences to break even.
Now comes the latest insult: Beijing is reportedly refusing to air ABC’s Academy Awards broadcast for the second straight year.
State-controlled CCTV has no plans to air this year’s Oscars ceremony on Sunday, anonymous sources told The Hollywood Reporter. Hong Kong’s TVB also hasn’t listed the Oscars in its upcoming broadcast schedule. The decision represents a slap to the face not only to Hollywood, but specifically The Walt Disney Co., which owns ABC and has spent the last twenty years cultivating a cozy relationship with the CCP regime.
A sign announcing the upcoming Oscars Award show towers over Hollywood Boulevard, March 18, 2022, in Hollywood, California. (ROBYN BECK/AFP via Getty Images)
China is boycotting the Oscars even though the Chinese-financed Dune is among the most nominated movies of the year. Dune, which is up for ten Oscars, including best picture, was majority financed by Legendary Pictures, which is owned by China’s Wanda Group.
Sources told THR that China’s decision to block the Oscars could stem from two concerns — a possible win for the documentary feature Ascension, which explores the Chinese economy, and celebrity support for Ukraine at a time when China has allied itself with Russia in that country’s invasion of the former.
Last year, China blocked the Oscars over Nomadland filmmaker Chloe Zhao, who is Chinese born and has spoken unfavorably about the CCP, and the documentary short film Do Not Split, about pro-democracy protests in Hong Kong.
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