The Walt Disney Co. has convinced China to lift its ban on Marvel movies, securing release dates for Black Panther: Wakanda Forever and the upcoming Ant-Man and The Wasp: Quantumania.
The reversal bears the unmistakable imprint of recently returned CEO Bob Iger, who developed close ties to China’s Communist leaders during his first tenure as Disney’s big cheese.
Marvel Studios announced the news Tuesday on its official Chinese social media accounts, according to multiple reports.
The Black Panther and Ant-Man sequels will be the first Marvel movies to screen in China since Spider-Man: Far From Home and Avengers: Endgame, which were both released in 2019. Since then China has imposed a virtual blackout on Marvel movies as it continues to promote its domestic film industry to the detriment of Hollywood.
While China was once a coveted territory for Hollywood releases, it has in a short period of time become a graveyard for Hollywood blockbusters as Chinese officials denied release slots to a growing number of foreign titles, effectively steering local audiences toward homegrown movies.
Recent flops include The Batman, Minions: The Rise of Gru, and Wonder Woman 1984.
Even Avatar: The Way of Water, which is a Disney release, has underperformed in China. The blockbuster sequel belly-flopped on its opening weekend in China, bringing in $57.1 million, far below the approximately $120 million it was expected to earn.
Since then, the Avatar sequel has received a rare extension in Chinese theaters — another sign of Iger’s powers of persuasion in China.
Iger’s working relationship with Chinese leaders is so close that he even expressed interest in becoming ambassador to China under President Joe Biden (D), though he ultimately didn’t take the job.
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