A poster of the Japanese film Crayon Shin-chan the Movie: Super Hot! Scorching Kasukabe Dancers is displayed on the smartphones of citizens in Fuyang, Anhui Province on November 17, 2025. Photo: VCG

China's film importers and distributors confirmed the postponement of the release of imported Japanese films such as Crayon Shin-chan the Movie: Super Hot! Scorching Kasukabe Dancers, and Cells at Work!, China Film News, a newspaper supervised by the China Film Administration, said in a report late Monday on its official WeChat account.

The adjustment is a prudent decision made after a comprehensive assessment of the market performance of Japanese imported films and the sentiments of Chinese audience, the film importers and distributors told the media.

Previously, the animated Japanese film Demon Slayer: Kimetsu no Yaiba - The Movie: Infinity Castle - Part 1: Akaza Returns has achieved strong initial box office results in the Chinese market due to its accumulated fan base. However, Japanese Prime Minister Sanae Takaichi's inappropriate remarks immediately sparked strong dissatisfaction among a broad segment of Chinese audiences, according to the China Film News report.

"Affected by Takaichi's absurd statements, the film's box office performance showed a significant decline three days after its release, with market enthusiasm quickly cooling," it said, adding that currently, the box office forecast for the fifth day of release has dropped to approximately 20 million yuan.

The report continued that against this backdrop, relevant Chinese importers and distributors of Japanese films originally scheduled for release in the near future have indicated that the provocative remarks from the Japanese side are bound to affect Chinese audiences' perception of Japanese films. 

The relevant parties therefore will follow market principles and respect the audience's sentiments, deciding to postpone the releases accordingly, the report said. 

As of November 16, the total box office revenue in the Chinese mainland this year has reached 45.543 billion yuan, solidifying its position as the world's second-largest film market. Among this, domestic films have contributed 40.298 billion yuan, accounting for 88.48 percent of the total. This year also marks the third time in Chinese film history that the annual box office revenue of domestic films has exceeded the 40-billion-yuan threshold, China Film News said. 

Crayon Shin-chan the Movie: Super Hot! Scorching Kasukabe Dancers was previously scheduled for release on December 6, and Cells at Work!, which was set to open on November 22, had already begun pre-sales. The rescheduled date of release for the two films has not been announced.



Global Times