Foreign releases lose out on revenue as homegrown films dominate Chinese box office

Foreign releases in China have lost out on revenue as homegrown releases gather steam at the box office. There has been a 55 percent decline in collection, according to industry data tracker Maoyan Entertainment, writes Variety.

China surpassed North America as the largest movie market in December 2019 with $3.13 million in earnings. Hollywood has been impacted due to erratic release schedules and moviegoers choosing domestic films over foreign content. The North American box office last year made $2.8 million, an 80 percent decline from 2019's $11.4 billion, according to Comscore.

The country has taken stringent measures to curb the virus, shutting them on 23 January and reopening on 20 July, notes Bloomberg. Many local films were released during this time, among them was last year's highest-grosser, a historical war drama The Eight Hundred (more than $460 million). Other territories are still grappling with the pandemic and have even enforced new lockdowns, resulting in cinemas remaining shut.

Many big budget films like Black Widow and Minions: The Rise of Gru were also postponed. The plummeted number of Hollywood films screened in China have also reduced their contribution to the box office numbers.

Theatres have also cut down the number of non-prime time screenings (6 to 9 pm), and have in

In addition to this, China also has a history of censoring content from foreign films, as well as controlling how many titles hit Chinese cinemas.

Some foreign films like Mulan stirred controversy in the territory for inaccurate and stereotypical portrayals of Chinese history and the main character, infused with nationalist tropes. The fantasy drama also came under fire for shooting in Xinjiang, an area where Uighurs, the country's minority community, has been detained in internment camps.

Paul W Anderson's Monster Hunter was pulled for a racist dialogue. The director later apologised and removed the scene from the movie.