ByteDance, the Chinese technology company behind TikTok, has said it will restrain its AI video-making tool, after threats of legal action from Disney and a backlash from other media businesses, according to reports. The AI video generator Seedance 2.0, released last week, has spooked Hollywood as users create realistic clips of movie stars and superheroes with just a short text prompt. Several big Hollywood studios have accused the tool of copyright infringement. On Friday, Walt Disney reportedly sent a cease-and-desist letter to ByteDance which accused it of supplying Seedance with…
Tag: Walt Disney Company
Zootopia 2 bucks trend for Hollywood releases in China as it breaks records for foreign animation
A comedy about animal cops investigating a reptilian mystery has become the highest-grossing foreign animated film ever in China, bucking the trend of declining interest in overseas productions that has resulted in Hollywood films struggling in the Chinese box office. Zootopia 2 (called Zootropolis 2 in some European countries), a hotly anticipated and widely marketed sequel to 2016’s Zootopia, was released in China last week. In its first seven days, it made about 2bn yuan (£213m) in ticket sales, making it one of the best-performing films of the year. On…
Disney’s Little Mermaid flops in China amid racist backlash over casting
The poor performance of Disney’s The Little Mermaid at the Chinese box office has reopened questions on Hollywood’s increasing difficulties in the world’s second-largest economy and the role racism has played in the film’s reception. The live action remake has grossed just $3.6m (£2.9m) since its release in Chinese cinemas on 26 May, according to Box Office Mojo. The film, starring Halle Bailey as the mermaid Ariel, arrives as Hollywood tries to edge back into a market increasingly dominated by domestic productions, and as Chinese authorities have shown reluctance to…
China ends de facto ban on Marvel films after more than three years
China has ended its de facto ban on Marvel films, with superhero flicks Black Panther: Wakanda Forever and Ant-Man and The Wasp: Quantumania both locking in surprise release dates, after a three-and-a-half-year gap that has cost Disney hundreds of millions in ticket sales. The films will be released in February, after Chinese new year, marking the first Marvel releases in the world’s second-largest theatrical market since Avengers: Endgame in 2019. Foreign film releases are approved or denied by regulators at the China Film Administration, which is part of the Chinese…
Winnie the Pooh joins Chinese Covid lockdown protests
Years after he became character non grata in China, Winnie the Pooh is exacting quiet revenge against the country’s government in the form of Disney souvenirs. In what appears to be a case of incidental resistance, Disney stores in Japan are selling a line of merchandise featuring a frowning Pooh looking at a blank sheet of white paper – a symbol of ongoing protests in China against censorship and Covid-19 restrictions. The range, designed by the Japanese illustrator Kanahei, shows the image – taken from a scene in a 2011…