Since the 2010s, China has been a honeypot for Hollywood blockbusters and has contributed heavily to the total grossing of some of this century’s biggest movies, including the Endgame duology and the Avatar flicks.
Although the second biggest movie market, this has given a lot of Hollywood releases an edge in the international market in recent years, it seems their luck might run out in the coming months.
Avatar | Credit: 20th Century Fox
With the US-China trade war catching steam in the wake of Home Alone 2 star Donald Trump’s globe-spanning tariffs, in retaliation, China is reportedly considering cutting Hollywood’s foothold in their domestic market.
China’s reported plans to combat tariffs might heavily cost Hollywood
Amidst blockbusters’ struggle in the domestic market, the Chinese-animated release, Ne Zha 2, crossed a whopping $2B figure, largely thanks to the Chinese box office, becoming the first non-English movie to achieve this feat. Although Ne Jha 2‘s success had to do with a lot of things, especially its cultural importance, the numbers stand as a testament to why major studios have been relying on the Chinese market for their international collection.
Ne Zha 2 | Credit: Beijing Enlight Media
However, with Donald Trump threatening to elevate the tariffs on Chinese goods to 104%, which currently stands at 54%, per two notable Chinese bloggers, China is reportedly considering “reducing or banning the import of U.S. films.” Liu Hong, a senior editor at the Xinhua News Agency, and Ren Yi, the grandson of the former Communist Party chief of Guangdong Province, Ren Zhongyi, simultaneously shared this report (via Bloomberg).
This could mean trouble for the summer blockbusters
While the reception to Hollywood releases has declined in recent years due to the rise of homegrown Chinese-language blockbusters, high-profile blockbusters still remain a crowd puller in China.
Per The Independent, in 2024 alone, Hollywood movies accounted for $585M gross in China, and with more blockbusters on the way, losing this market could heavily impact studios’ bottom line, especially in the upcoming months.
Superman | Credit: DC Studios
Considering superhero outings from Marvel and DC have heavily relied on the Chinese box office market for a major portion of their overall gross, losing this market could hinder their international collection. The same goes for Tom Cruise’s Mission: Impossible, which has grossed over $430M over the franchise’s iconic run.
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With The Final Reckoning, The Fantastic Four: First Steps, and Superman on board to release this summer, if China does stick with these plans, this could mean major bother for the studio suits.
This post belongs to FandomWire and first appeared on FandomWire
