Ghostbusters Is Denied A Release In China... But Why?

It’s bad news for the ‘Ghostbusters’ reboot… it looks like the second biggest movie market in the world will be denying it a release.

China has turned the movie down, sources tell The Hollywood Reporter, which will be a huge blow to the potential profits for its studio Sony.

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Why the movie is being denied was open to some speculation, notably due to some of China’s more unusual censorship rules.

It was thought that because of its supernatural nature, it would fall foul of an official Communist Party guideline that bans movies that 'promote cults or superstition’.

'Pirates of the Caribbean: Dead Man’s Chest’ was said to have failed to get a release in 2006 for that same reason, due to scenes featuring ghosts.

The notion that it would be banned over its ghostly plot was given further credence when the film’s name was changed to 'Super Power Dare Die Team’ (Ivan Reitman’s original, though never released in China, was called 'Ghost Catcher Dare Die Team’… note the missing ‘ghost’ there).

However, it could be that the reason for the refusal is much more pragmatic.

Another Chinese movie business source told the Reporter: “It’s been confirmed that Ghostbusters won’t be coming to China, because they think it’s not really that attractive to Chinese audiences.

“Most of the Chinese audience didn’t see the first and second movies, so they don’t think there’s much market for it here.”

It will certainly be a body blow for Sony, costing likely tens of millions in lost revenue.

The movie cost a not insubstantial $144 million to make (£108 million), and while box office analysts are expecting the Paul Feig-helmed film to open to as much as $50 million on its opening weekend in the US, it would have benefitted hugely from the Chinese market.

Starring Melissa McCarthy, Kristen Wiig, Kate McKinnon and Leslie Jones, it’s out now across the UK.

Image credits: Sony