Washington Post Warns That China's Hollywood Invasion Is a 'Propaganda' Play

Dalian Wanda

In the wake of a Hollywood spending spree by China’s Dalian Wanda Group, the Washington Post has published a deeply cautionary editorial, warning that “Beijing’s next propaganda outlet” could be the entertainment industry.

The Chinese firm has purchased Legendary Entertainment and has a pending deal to buy Dick Clark Productions, which produces the Golden Globes and American Music Awards, and the paper sees this as “a matter of national strategic importance.”

“China already has imposed its censorious values on Hollywood studios, using access to its lucrative but strictly limited market (where Dalian Wanda also controls many theaters) as leverage,” the editorial says, adding that Wanda enjoys substantially greater freedom to conduct business in the U.S. than foreign firms are granted in China.

Also Read: U.S. Government Agency Will Review Dalian Wanda, Chinese Investment in Hollywood ... Eventually

“Not only does Beijing seek to impose its censor’s rules on American films, but it also refuses foreign investors the same access to Chinese media and entertainment industries that Dalian Wanda enjoys in the United States. It is not far-fetched to assume that China would seek to spread pro-regime propaganda via ownership of U.S. entertainment media.”

Wanda, which bought Legendary for $3.5 billion and plans to target one of the “Big Six” Hollywood studios next, is in talks to buy Dick Clark Productions at a $1 billion valuation.

“Is its ownership also a matter of national strategic importance?” asked the article. “The answer, according to a growing number of U.S. officials and entertainment industry observers, is maybe. That’s because the would-be buyer is Dalian Wanda, a Chinese conglomerate whose chairman’s Communist Party membership and close ties to President Xi Jinping’s government in Beijing make it a private firm only in a nominal sense.”

Also Read: China's Wanda Group in Talks to Buy Dick Clark Productions

The editorial added, “If fully executed, this acquisition strategy could give Dalian Wanda, and by extension its patrons in Beijing, influence over not only the distribution of films but also their content.”

The paper recalls when Japan spent billions of dollars to take over Columbia Pictures and Universal but were forced to retreat because they underwent financial losses. However, it said, there is a “fundamental difference” between China and Japan’s spending habits.

“Japan is a strategic ally of the United States and a democracy committed to free expression,” it said. “China, by contrast, is adversarial and ruled by a dictator, Mr. Xi, who has openly declared a global propaganda agenda, based on the idea that ‘Chinese art will further develop only when we make foreign things serve China.’“

Also Read: TheGrill 2016: Michael Lynton Says Sony Will Not Be Sold to China's Wanda -- Or Anyone Else

The 28-year-old Wanda Group is on pace to spend more than $30 billion in deals this year, with almost half of that in sports and entertainment. The company that began as a residential real estate development firm in the northern port city of Dalian, China, has grown at a record pace. Two months ago, it announced plans to install 4,000 new RealD 3D screens and 150 new IMAX theaters — the largest-ever installation deals for each of those formats.

Its latest move was to set a strategic alliance with Sony Pictures Entertainment. Wanda will invest in key film franchises that will be announced within the coming weeks, one individual familiar with the deal said. In return, SPE will take advantage of the considerable marketing and release power that the investment group enjoys in China.

And congress seems to be concerned by all of the activity. Earlier this week, the Government Accountability Office accepted a request from members of congress to review the Committee on Foreign Investment in the United States and determine whether its legal powers have kept pace with the influx of international buyers targeting American companies — particularly the fire hose of Chinese investment in Hollywood.

Hollywood's 22 Biggest Box Office Champs in China (Photos)

Chinese moviegoers love to spend their hard-earned yuan on Hollywood blockbusters like "Captain America: Civil War," "Avatar" and "Star Wars: The Force Awakens." Comedies and dramas? Not so much. Read on to see which American hits have raked in the most money (according to BoxOfficeMojo) in that nation across the Pacific.
Disney/Marvel/Lucasfilm/Fox
"Furious 7" (2015)

$390.9 million

The Vin Diesel and Dwayne Johnson revved-up action flick is easily the highest-grossing Hollywood movie ever in China. The late Paul Walker remains among China's most beloved American actors.
Universal
"Transformers: Age of Extinction" (2014)

$320 million

Mark Wahlberg starred in the sci-fi movie based on the foldable toys, which was co-produced by two Chinese firms and was the first Hollywood movie to make more than $300 million in the Middle Kingdom.
Paramount
"Avengers: Age of Ultron" (2015)

$240.1 million

The superhero mashup is China's highest-grossing Marvel Cinematic Universe film, a franchise that's been embraced by the country's young-leaning moviegoers.
Marvel
"Zootopia" (2016)

$235.6 million

The buddy-cop comedy is the highest-grossing imported animated film in the history of the Chinese box office, and it played especially well in China's second- and third-tier cities.
Disney
"Jurassic World" (2015)

$228.7 million

Like "Furious 7," the dinosaur sci-fi adventure was produced by Legendary Entertainment, which was acquired by China's Dalian Wanda Group in January.
Universal
"Warcraft" (2016)

$220.8 million

Another Legendary film, this one inspired by a video game series, flopped in the U.S. but dominated the Chinese market, which is home to about half of the video game's players worldwide.
Universal
"Avatar" (2009)

$204.1 million

The worldwide smash hit also captivated Chinese audiences, even back in 2009, when the country's box office was a fraction of the size that it is today.
Fox
"Captain America: Civil War" (2016)

$190.4 million

The latest film in the Marvel Cinematic Universe -- with an ensemble cast that includes Robert Downey Jr., Chris Evans, Scarlett Johansson and Don Cheadle -- continued the iconic comic book company's momentum in China.
Marvel
"Transformers: Dark of the Moon" (2011)

$165.1 million

The prequel to this film, 2009's "Transformers: Revenge of the Fallen," made $65.8 million in China, setting the stage for "Dark of the Moon" to be the country's highest-grossing Hollywood film since "Avatar" at the time.
Paramount
"Kung Fu Panda 3" (2016)

$154.3 million

The Mandarin-language version of the movie starring Jack Black as a friendly fighting bear had the characters reanimated so their mouths moved naturally with the translated words.
DreamWorks
"The Jungle Book" (2016)

$150.1 million

The live-action/animation hybrid was a hit in several international markets, especially India, and it also played well throughout China.
Disney
"Mission: Impossible - Rogue Nation" (2015)

$135.7 million

China's Alibaba Pictures invested in "Rogue Nation," and star Tom Cruise visited several Chinese cities to promote the film, helping it open strong and stick around in theaters even though its China debut came more than a month after its U.S. premiere.
Paramount
"Star Wars: The Force Awakens" (2016)

$124.2 million

Despite China being one of the few markets that didn't catch "Star Wars" fever -- the movie put some people there to sleep -- Disney's promotional efforts helped it clear $100 million.
Lucasfilm
"Interstellar" (2014)

$122 million

The epic space adventure starring Matthew McConaughey, Anne Hathaway and Jessica Chastain connected with Chinese audiences, even though it wasn't in the 3D format that crowds there have grown used to.

Paramount
"The Hobbit: The Battle of the Five Armies" (2014)

$121.7 million

The third and final installment in Peter Jackson's "Hobbit" series was another movie that succeeded even though it was released in China well after its U.S. premiere.
Warner Bros.
"Iron Man 3" (2013)

$121.2 million

All three movies in the Robert Downey Jr. franchise have played in China, helping build brand awareness beyond just the bankable Marvel name.
Marvel
"X-Men: Apocalypse" (2016)

$12o.8 million

Disney bought Marvel Entertainment in 2009, but Fox acquired the film rights to Marvel's "X-Men" franchise before then. It doesn't seem to matter much in China, where anything Marvel often turns into a big hit.
Fox
"Captain America: The Winter Soldier" (2014)

$115.6 million

The predecessor to this year's "Civil War," "Winter Soldier" was a hit despite its fairly political content, which is usually a negative in Chinese theaters.
Marvel
"Terminator Genisys" (2015)

$113.2 million

The fifth "Terminator" film was the franchise's lowest-grossing since the 1984 original, but it was the first in the series to get a Chinese theatrical release.
Paramount
"Pacific Rim" (2013)

$111.9 million

The futuristic sci-fi adventure, in which humans battle sea monsters, is yet another fantasy action movie that Chinese audiences loved.
Warner Bros.
"Ant-Man" (2015)

$105.4 million

Yet another Marvel Cinematic Universe movie, "Ant-Man" made just $180.2 million at the domestic box office but was a much bigger hit in China.
Marvel
"San Andreas" (2015)

$103.2 million

China knows Dwayne Johnson from the "Fast and Furious" franchise, and the earthquake disaster film he headlined last year reverberated at the Chinese box office.
Warner Bros.

1 of 23

Chinese moviegoers can’t get enough of America’s big-budget action flicks

Chinese moviegoers love to spend their hard-earned yuan on Hollywood blockbusters like "Captain America: Civil War," "Avatar" and "Star Wars: The Force Awakens." Comedies and dramas? Not so much. Read on to see which American hits have raked in the most money (according to BoxOfficeMojo) in that nation across the Pacific.

View In Gallery