Warner Bros blacks out "Dark Knight" from China
The Warner Bros studio said on Wednesday it has canceled plans to release its blockbuster Batman movie "The Dark Knight" in China, citing "cultural sensitivities" surrounding the film.
The studio, a unit of Time Warner Inc, did not specify what Chinese audiences or censors might find objectionable about the movie.
"Based on a number of pre-release conditions that are being attached to 'The Dark Knight,' as well as cultural sensitivities to some elements of the film, we have opted to forego a theatrical release of the film in China," Warner Bros said in a statement.
The film includes a sequence in which Batman, the movie's comic book superhero played by Christian Bale, penetrates a criminal mastermind's skyscraper redoubt in the Chinese territory of Hong Kong.
"The Dark Knight," which was released in July, is the top-grossing film of the year with more than $996 million in worldwide ticket sales, including over $7.5 million in Hong Kong, according to the website Box Office Mojo.
The film also has earned the late Australian actor Heath Ledger a Golden Globe nomination for his final role as Batman's maniacally evil foe, the Joker.
-AKRO