In light of the escalating conflict between Tokyo and Beijing, movie distributors have halted the screening of at least two Japanese films in China.
According to state broadcaster CCTV, this was a "prudent decision" that took into consideration the negative feeling of home viewers.
Just two weeks have passed since Japanese Prime Minister Sanae Takaichi's comments regarding Taiwan provoked a strong reaction from China and began the most significant diplomatic dispute between the two East Asian nations in recent memory.
Certain Japanese films, such as the animated "Crayon Shin chan the Movie: Super Hot! Scorching Kasukabe Dancers" and the manga turned-movie "Cells at Work!" that were supposed to be released in the upcoming weeks, will not start showing in mainland China as planned, according to CCTV, which cited checks with distributors and importers.
After Takaichi's comments, "strong dissatisfaction from Chinese audiences" caused the animated feature "Demon Slayer: Infinity Castle" to perform worse at the box office, according to CCTV late on Monday.
According to CCTV, film distributors and importers have decided to respect audience sentiment, pay attention to the market's reaction, and delay the release of next pictures.
Following Takaichi's warning to Japanese lawmakers this month that a Chinese strike on Taiwan endangering Japan's life could result in a military reaction, Japan has attempted to calm the increasing conflict with China.
Since then, Beijing has advised its citizens to refrain from visiting Japan, and Li Qiang, the premier of China, has no intention of meeting Takaichi during this week's G20 summit in South Africa.
Takaichi met with the leaders of Japan's three business federations late on Monday, and they advocated communication to ease diplomatic tensions.
Following the discussion, Yoshinobu Tsutsui, head of Keidanren, the largest business lobby in Japan, told reporters that "political stability is a prerequisite for economic exchange," according to media sources.
