‘Monster Hunter’ pulled in China after backlash over ‘racist’ scene

The fantasy action film ‘Monster Hunter’ has been pulled from cinemas in China, just days after its release, AFP reported. A brief dialogue in the film, which Chinese social media users termed as “racist,” was widely criticised. 

The film, an adaption of a popular role-playing video game of the same name, premiered in China on Friday.

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In a scene, a character played by Asian-American rapper and actor Jin Au-Yeung tells his companion, “Look at my knees!”

The white male character replies, “What kind of knees are these?” and Jin jokes, “Chi-nese.”

Criticism of the line went viral on Chinese social media over the weekend, with many saying it was racist and some calling for a boycott.

Many users on China’s popular Twitter-like Weibo app said they were offended by the apparent linking of “Chinese” with the symbolism of someone being brought to their knees.

“The lines may not be a big deal for westerners but in the Chinese context ‘knees’ has a humiliating connotation,” a user wrote on Weibo.

Following the backlash, the movie disappeared from the country’s ticket-booking sites.

Constantin Film, a German company that co-produced the film issued an apology on Sunday, AFP quoted a report by entertainment news site Deadline.com.

“There was absolutely no intent to discriminate, insult or otherwise offend anyone of Chinese heritage,” the company said.

It said the line had been removed from the film.

The film is co-produced by Sony Pictures and Chinese tech giant Tencent, who haven’t issued public statements.

China has some of the world’s most restrictive censorship and its censors don’t announce when films are pulled, AFP reported.

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The Communist Party’s Central Propaganda Department approves only a handful of foreign films for release each year and they are sometimes screened with major cuts, as per an AFP report.

Last year, multiple scenes in the film “Bohemian Rhapsody” referencing iconic musician Freddie Mercury’s sexuality – a pivotal part of his biography – were dropped in its China release.