Hollywood's fading charm in China and why US tariffs are making it worse

A woman walking past a poster of the U.S. movie "Civil War" at a cinema in Beijing, capital of China, June 7, 2024. [Xinhua] Once the king of China's silver screen, Hollywood now finds itself sidelined, as local blockbusters surge and Washington's tariffs against the rest of the world add fuel to shifting audience sentiment. According to data released this week, Chinese animated feature "Ne Zha 2" has scored a thunderous success, raking in 15.2 billion yuan (about 2.11 billion U.S. dollars) at China's box office in just 12 weeks. In stark contrast, the top-performing American film so far this year, "A Minecraft Movie" from Warner Bros., has just crossed 150 million yuan and failed to break into China's top 10 films of 2025. That continues a sobering trend: 2024 marked the second consecutive year in which no Hollywood title cracked the one-billion-yuan mark, a symbolic threshold once routinely surpassed. The sharp contrast highlights the deepening decline of Hollywood's influence in the world's second-largest movie market. Analysts say U.S. tariffs and trade restrictions are only accelerating the slide. Creative decline Industry data tells the story. American movies' share of China's annual box office revenue has plunged from 36 percent in 2018 and 30 percent in 2019 to just 14 percent in 2024, according to figures from box office tracker Maoyan, obtained by Xinhua. That fading influence extends beyond box office numbers. "American blockbusters aren't drawing much of a crowd anymore," wrote one Weibo user nicknamed "SurfaceMe," blaming a mix of lackluster quality and declining favorability amid tariff and trade tensions. "The appeal, emotional resonance, and cultural impact of Hollywood films are fading among Chinese audiences," said Rao Shuguang, president of the China Film Critics Association. "Creatively, Hollywood has grown conservative, leaning too heavily on Marvel and other franchise fare. The visual spectacle remains, but viewers are experiencing aesthetic fatigue. And on a deeper level, American stories often feel disconnected from Chinese life, making it harder to generate empathy or emotional response." According to a China Film News report, original Hollywood productions accounted for just 18.6 percent of all U.S. studio releases in 2024, a dramatic decline from 40.9 percent in 2000. In contrast, sequels, reboots, adaptations and spinoffs now account for 81.4 percent. This cost-efficient but creatively cautious model has dampened Chinese viewers' expectations for high-quality cinematic content, it says. Dwindling favorability But Hollywood's creative slump is only part of the picture. Industry insiders point to another force hastening its fall in China: the long shadow of Washington's aggressive tariff policy and its downstream effects on public sentiment. Film is part of the broader U.S. services sector, where the United States has traditionally maintained a significant trade surplus with China. According to the U.S. Department of Commerce, U.S. service exports to China grew more than eightfold between 2001 and 2023, with the annual surplus peaking at nearly 40 billion dollars. Film and other IP-driven content have long been a key part of that advantage. "U.S. politicians fixated on manufacturing trade deficits are overlooking the billions America has earned through services," said Ming Jinwei, a Beijing-based commentator and widely followed blogger. He warned that weaponizing tariffs could backfire by undermining America's winning sectors. A citizen walks past a movie poster at a cinema in Beijing, capital of China, Aug. 22, 2024. [Xinhua] "Irrational U.S. tariffs could trigger a chain reaction, as IP-driven cultural industries are 'cross-media, integrated and long-chained,'" said Chen Xuguang, director of the Institute of Film, Television and Theatre at Peking University. Washington's tariff policies risk triggering a ripple effect, with audiences drifting away from Hollywood films and potentially other U.S. cultural exports tied to major IP, he said. Repercussions Washington's trade restrictions and tariff escalations against China are already being felt in the reception of American cultural exports here. Franchises like Transformers, Fast & Furious and even Marvel, once guaranteed box office juggernauts, are now performing inconsistently -- or outright poorly -- in China. "It's been rare for an American film to cross the 100 million yuan mark in China in recent years -- unless it's something truly special," said Dong Wenxin, a film critic and manager of a cinema in Jinan, Shandong Province. "They're getting beaten not just by Japanese anime but also by European arthouse and regional Asian surprises." Tastes are shifting. Japanese animation continues to draw steady crowds, while European and Southeast Asian films are gaining ground. This year's surprise hits, Italy's "There's Still Tomorrow" and Britain's "National Theatre Live: Prima Facie," have exceeded expectations. Thailand's "How to Make Millions Before Grandma Dies" became a breakout sleeper last year. Looking ahead, Dong said China's film market is likely to forge even closer ties beyond the United States to meet the increasingly diverse audience needs. And Beijing is already moving in that direction. A recent film agreement with Spain calls for deepening collaboration on co-productions, film festivals and mutual screenings, signaling that China is broadening its cultural partnerships. The irony is stark: Washington's trade restrictions and tariff moves, designed to protect American industries, may end up crippling one of the country's most impactful exports -- its cultural influence, analysts say. "U.S. tariffs don't just tax goods -- they tax appeal," said Ming. "And in today's global entertainment economy, once that appeal wanes, even the strongest cultural influence may have to struggle to endure."

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