Image via Universal Pictures
(This article contains spoilers for Minions: The Rise of Gru. You can read our full review here).
Minions: The Rise of Gru was a smash hit in theaters, and it’s finally opened in China. However, it looks like the Chinese version of Minions: The Rise of Gru decided to take a different route than the standard version.
In the original version of the film, Gru and his mentor Wild Knuckles ride off after Wild Knuckles faked his funeral. The Chinese version of the film decided that this ending was just not good enough.
The Chinese version makes Wild Knuckles go to jail and Gru “becomes one of the good guys.”
Users of the Chinese microblogging site Weibo posted screenshots of the film, showing censors had added a series of subtitled still images into the credits sequence. In the screenshots, it’s explained that Wild Knuckles was caught and put in jail for 20 years following a failed heist. He also discovers a “love of acting” and sets up a theater troupe.
Gru “returned to his family” and his “biggest accomplishment” was being a father to his three girls.
Many in China were displeased with the changes. Many believed that the changes promoted China’s three-child policy as the country continues to try and raise its birth rate.
A popular movie blogger on Weibo called DuSir has more than 14 million followers and called the changes “outrageous.” He questioned why only Chinese people needed “special guidance and care.”
“How weak and lacking judgement do they think our audiences are?” He asked.
The film did go on to be successful in the box office, and grossed the equivalent of $3.2 million in its opening weekend in China.
This isn’t the first time foreign movies have been censored in China or have had altered endings. The popular film, Fight Club, was released on a Chinese streaming platform called Tencent Video. Its original ending was completely removed (the one were the protagonist blows up skyscrapers), with a message saying that authorities had saved the day and won.
Tencent later reserved most of the changes after massive backlash online.
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