Minions: The Rise of Gru has been performing spectactularly worldwide and charmed millions of families with the return of everyone's favorite collection of the titular creatures. But the family-friendly nature of the spinoff was not enough for Chinese censors, who tacked on a brutal new ending for the film.
As reported by Reuters, users across Chinese social media platform Weibo voiced their complaints about the addendum attached to the ending of The Rise of Gru. On a black screen was a bit of text reading Gru returned to his family and Wild Knuckles -- the former leader of the Vicious 6 -- was caught by authorities and served 20 years in prison. In theaters elsewhere, The Rise of Gru ends with the titular aspiring supervillain and Wild Knuckles riding off together after the latter fakes his death to avoid capture.
No Supervillains Allowed
The Communist Party-ruled government in China has imposed strict censorship guidelines on film, television and video games over the last decade. Films cannot present viewers with a positive light on anarchy or criminal behavior, meaning films, including animated features such as Minions: The Rise of Gru, require editing to its storyline in order to be acceptable for viewing. Additional restrictions were introduced in 2021, which marked the centennial of the Chinese Communist Party and saw a broad cultural shift intended to encourage nationalist attitudes.
The change is not dissimilar to the addendum briefly attached to Fight Club when it was released on streaming services earlier this year. On top of numerous alterations to the film, removing many of its controversial elements, the ending read, "Through the clue provided by Tyler, the police rapidly figured out the whole plan and arrested all criminals, successfully preventing the bomb from exploding. After the trial, Tyler was sent to lunatic asylum receiving psychological treatment. He was discharged from the hospital in 2012." Much like the case of The Rise of Gru, audiences mocked the change on social media.
These edits have not gone over well with Chinese audiences themselves. The report included mention of Weibo users comparing the addendum to a PowerPoint presentation. Some critics and reviewers have questioned why such a screen was necessary at all, given the animated nature of the film.
Since a broad crackdown on mainstream culture over the course of 2021, China has restricted the number of Hollywood films it allows into theaters, further than the official quota for foreign films, which stands at 34. Previous reports suggest studio executives may be adopting a different approach, in part due to restrictions and partly due to backlash from Western audiences, who have criticized the decision major studios' have made to accomodate Chinese censors.
Source: Reuters