Good news for Chinese moviegoers. Avatar: The Way of Water has been approved to be released in China on its planned December release date. This comes after the country rejected recent Disney-Marvel films, such as Shang-Chi and the Legend of the Ten Rings, Doctor Strange in the Multiverse of Madness, and Spider-Man: No Way Home.
The Wall Street Journal reported that Chinese authorities notified The Walt Disney Company that the upcoming blockbuster film has been approved for its global release. Disney broke the news on its official Weibo page, where it told its Chinese audience that the film will be coming to the country on the same day as the rest of the world. Multiple fans who saw the post expressed excitement and are keen for the film’s release.
Avatar was a huge film in China, grossing over $200 million at the box office in 2010. Deadline reported that the film had a rerelease in Chinese theaters in 2021, and grossed an extra $58 million at the box office.
CNN reported that Hollywood would not release or adjust its films for the Chinese audience due to China’s strict censorship laws. That is why titles such as Top Gun: Maverick and other huge Marvel films didn’t hit Chinese screens this year. In the past, Chinese versions of Hollywood films would censor or alter scenes that were not part of the original cut. Due to this, Avatar: The Way of Water will become the first Hollywood blockbuster film to be released in China since the COVID-19 pandemic.
Avatar: The Way of Water is scheduled to come out in theaters on Dec 16, 2022.