Monster Hunter has been pulled from movie theaters in China following backlash to a joke in the film many are condemning as racist. The feature film adaptation of the popular Capcom video game of the same name is written and directed by Paul W. S. Anderson and stars Milla Jovovich. The Monster Hunter movie isn't based on any specific game in the series, and is instead an original story that sees a group of soldiers led by Jovovich's Lieutenant Artemis land in the world of Monster Hunter after falling through a strange portal.
As with practically every movie in 2020, Monster Hunter's release date moved around a lot before settling on a December 25. Internationally, however, Monster Hunter is already out in many territories, including China. It's there the movie is creating a controversy as moviegoers are denouncing Monster Hunter on social media for its inclusion of a joke they claim is a reference to the racist rhyming chant, "Chinese, Japanese, dirty knees". In the movie, the exchange sees Jin Au-Yeung's character exclaiming "Look at my knees!", followed by the question, "What kind of knees are these?", to which he replies,"Chi-knees!". Following the wave of backlash, which included review bombing of the movie as well as the game on various review aggregate sites, Monster Hunter is now being pulled from Chinese theaters.
According to Deadline, Monster Hunter is no longer being shown in movie theaters in China following the intense backlash. The film only opened in China on December 4, with some early previews the night before. The outlet further reports that Tencent, the company handling the film's distribution in China, is working to have a new version of the film - one without the offending scene - sent to theaters but it's unclear if the quick fix will be enough to get the movie re-released.
Recent years have seen China become a much-sought after market for Hollywood movies. Big franchises like the MCU, Fast & Furious, and Transformers perform very well in China and catering to this growing audience is becoming more of a factor for Hollywood. Notably, video game movies that generally don't perform well in the U.S., like Warcraft, are big hits in China. Monster Hunter was likely looking to cash-in on this trend, with the hope that even if the U.S. box office is weak (a strong likelihood given many theaters remain closed amid the pandemic) then they would at least see a strong showing in China. But that's never going to happen if the movie can't even play in China.
Obviously, at no point did anyone involved with Monster Hunter consider the implications of the joke or that it would be seen in such poor taste. And hopefully, there was no intention of actually being racist with the joke. But the strong reaction highlights a disconnect between those making the movies and the audience they're hoping will enjoy them. If Hollywood is hoping to expand into new markets, studios and filmmakers will need to be aware of how their movies will be received both at home and abroad. The joke would likely have earned backlash in the U.S. as well, but in playing first to a Chinese audience, the fact that it's a bad joke with ugly racist undertones is recognized immediately. The backlash to Monster Hunter will hopefully serve as a lesson, ensuring that future movies won't make such insensitive and easily avoidable mistakes.
Source: Deadline