China blocked Spider-Man film over US 'patriotism'

The latest Spider-Man blockbuster was banned from release in China after Sony refused to remove scenes of America that Beijing deemed "too patriotic", including images of the superhero swinging around the Statue of Liberty, according to a media report.

The claim was published on the Puck News website, which cited unnamed sources as saying Chinese censors had asked last year if the Sony could "delete the Statue of Liberty from the ending" of Spider-Man: No Way Home.

The superhero, played by British actor Tom Holland, is seen battling supervillains around the symbol of American freedom.

Sony declined. China then inquired if the New York statue could be "minimised", according to the report.

The censors wondered "if Sony could cut a few of the more patriotic shots of Holland standing atop the crown, or dull the lighting so that Lady Liberty's visage wasn't so front-and-centre", the Puck News website reported.

No Way Home grossed $805 million (£640 million) at the North America box office. It never received a Chinese release date, with no reason given.

Taking the film out of the Chinese market would have cost Sony millions. If true, it marks a rare rebuke by Hollywood of Chinese censorship.

The two previous films in the Tom Holland Spider-Man franchise grossed $116 million and $200 million at the Chinese box office.

Despite not being released in China, No Way Home, which was released late last year in the US, still became one of the highest-grossing movies of all time, listed behind Avatar, Titanic, and Star Wars: The Force Awakens.