Ne Zha: Good, Captain America: Bad

How a Blockbuster Generated Anti-American Sentiment in China

You’ve probably heard about it: the Chinese animated movie Ne Zha 2 was an unparalleled success in China, surpassing all Western animated movies released in the past year. It provided Chinese citizens with an incredible sense of pride, demonstrating that China can also produce its own blockbusters.

What you might not have heard is that the movie also sparked a wave of ultranationalism in China, with citizens calling for a boycott of American productions and even advocating for the demise of the Western film industry within China.

Let’s dive in and find out more!

《哪吒2》不仅激发了粉丝的民族自豪感，还引发了其对好莱坞竞争对手——最新上映的《美国队长4：勇敢新世界》的敌意。反好莱坞的言论也开始涌现，一些中国网民对《哪吒2》在北美放映场次有限表示不满。

• 自豪感 (zì háo gǎn): sense of pride

• 好莱坞 (hǎo lái wū): Hollywood

• 敌意 (dí yì): hostility, antagonism

"Nezha 2" not only sparked fans' sense of national pride but also stirred hostility toward its Hollywood competitor — the newly released Captain America 4: Brave New World. Anti-Hollywood sentiments have also begun to surface, with some Chinese netizens expressing dissatisfaction over the limited screenings of Nezha 2 in North America.

“哪吒在海外活不活无所谓，美国队长在中国必须死。”一条社交媒体帖子写道，指的是上周在中国上映电影的《美国队长4》。这条口号很快在中国社媒上传播开来。《美国队长4》影片下差评扎堆，有网友写“谁看谁生病”，还有网友给出差评但表示没看过 - “我是不会看的！”

四川广元一个影城直接在告示牌宣布，“为支持《哪吒2》，本影城暂不考虑《美国队长4》排片”。但有网友在社媒上评论该影城行为“只是为了博流量”

• 口号 (kǒu hào): slogan, catchphrase

• 差评 (chà píng): negative review, bad rating

• 扎堆 (zhā duī): to crowd together, to form a group

• 告示牌 (gào shì pái): notice board, signboard

• 博流量 (bó liú liàng): to gain traffic (in the context of online attention or popularity)

"Whether Nezha thrives overseas doesn’t matter, but Captain America must fail in China," read a social media post referring to Captain America 4, which premiered in China last week. This slogan quickly gained traction on Chinese social media. The film’s comment section was flooded with negative reviews, with one user writing, "Anyone who watches it must be sick," while another gave it a poor rating despite admitting they hadn’t seen it: "I will never watch it!"

A cinema in Guangyuan, Sichuan, directly announced on its notice board: "To support Nezha 2, this cinema will temporarily not schedule screenings of Captain America 4." However, some netizens commented on social media that the cinema's actions were "just a publicity stunt to gain attention."

中国社媒上一篇《不是“美国队长”不行了，而是美国不行了》认为《哪吒2》的成功让中国人“终于在文化领域出了一口恶气”，并将《哪吒2》故事里的“抗争精神”与现实中“中国人面对美国‘霸权重压’中国高科技产业，迎难而上‘奉陪到底’的精神”联系在一起。并表示《美国队长4》票房不佳是因为“超级英雄，美国捍卫和平，拯救人类”与实际“严重背离”。

• 恶气 (è qì): resentment, frustration

• 并将 (bìng jiāng): and (indicating continuation or consequence)

• 抗争精神 (kàng zhēng jīng shén): spirit of resistance

• 霸权重压 (bà quán zhòng yā): hegemonic pressure, heavy oppression from hegemony

• 迎难而上 (yíng nán ér shàng): to face difficulties head-on, to rise to the challenge

• 奉陪到底 (fèng péi dào dǐ): to accompany or support to the end, to go along with something all the way

• 拯救 (zhěng jiù): to rescue, to save

A Chinese social media article titled "It’s Not That ‘Captain America’ Is Failing, It’s That America Is Failing" argued that the success of Nezha 2 allowed Chinese people to "finally vent their frustration in the cultural sphere." The piece linked the "spirit of resistance" in Nezha 2's storyline to the real-world perseverance of "Chinese people facing the oppressive hegemony of the U.S. and the challenges to China’s high-tech industries, meeting difficulties head-on with unyielding determination." It also claimed that Captain America 4's poor box office performance stemmed from the disconnect between its portrayal of "superheroes defending peace and saving humanity" and the reality of "a severe departure from these ideals."

根据票务平台猫眼的数据，漫威电影《美国队长4》在中国上映首周票房仅为8710万元人民币（约1199万美元），远低于其在美国首映周末8800万美元的票房成绩。

相比之下，1月29日在中国上映的《哪吒2》，包括国际票房在内，已累计收入126 亿元民币。但有网友在网上晒票根表示各地机关企业学校等都在组织集体观影甚至包场《哪吒2》，认为票房背后有官方“灌水成分”。

• 猫眼 (māo yǎn): Maoyan (a popular Chinese ticketing platform)

• 漫威电影 (màn wēi diàn yǐng): Marvel movies

• 相比之下 (xiāng bǐ zhī xià): in comparison, by contrast

• 晒票根 (shài piào gēn): to show or share ticket stubs

• 灌水成分 (guàn shuǐ chéng fèn): inflated or exaggerated figures (often implying manipulation or artificial inflation)

According to data from the ticketing platform Maoyan, Marvel's Captain America 4 earned only 87.1 million RMB (approximately $11.99 million) in its first week in China, significantly lower than its $88 million opening weekend in the United States.

In contrast, Nezha 2, which premiered in China on January 29, has amassed a total box office revenue of 12.6 billion RMB, including international earnings. However, some netizens shared ticket stubs online, claiming that government agencies, businesses, and schools across the country were organizing group viewings or even booking entire theaters for Nezha 2. These users argued that the impressive box office figures might be inflated by official intervention.

Have you watched Ne Zha 2? If so what did you think about it?

Antoine & Dorota