Winnie the Pooh: Blood and Honey

Winnie the Pooh: Blood and Honey" — which features a character often used as a meme to poke fun at Chinese leader Xi Jinping — was set to open Thursday.

[canceled the event](https://www.bloomberg.com/news/articles/2022-10-21/hong-kong-cancels-screening-of-batman-film-shot-in-the-city) based on Hong Kong government guidance stating that it was too violent. Critics of the Chinese Communist Party adopted Pooh as a symbol of the Chinese leader, prompting the government to [ban parodies of the bear on social media](https://www.bbc.com/news/blogs-china-blog-40627855) in China. The 2018 “Christopher Robin” film, which also stars Pooh Bear, was [ denied release in China](https://www.hollywoodreporter.com/movies/movie-features/christopher-robin-refused-china-release-winnie-pooh-crackdown-1131907/), according to the Hollywood Reporter. Some see Hong Kong’s film ecosystem moving closer to China, where [only a handful of foreign films](https://variety.com/2022/film/news/foreign-titles-squeezed-in-china-film-market-1235151950/) make it into theaters annually. president Barack Obama](https://i.guim.co.uk/img/media/09b3b2e1ff83bfdb2c83055d7333aba083df119d/48_0_672_403/master/672.jpg?width=300&quality=45&auto=format&fit=max&dpr=2&s=c328d7342f14401b8183660515bed5f0) sparked comparisons of the pair to Winnie the Pooh and Tigger, respectively. [endorse, support, promote, glorify, encourage or incite](https://www.elegislation.gov.hk/hk/cap392) any criminal conduct or any act which would be contrary to the interests of national security.” Showing such a film could result in a fine of 1 million Hong Kong dollars (about $127,000) and three years in prison. Hong Kong has seen several instances of sudden cancellations in recent years. Hong Kong’s Office for Film, Newspaper and Article Administration said in a statement that it had approved the film and that arrangements to screen films “are the commercial decisions of the cinemas concerned, and OFNAA would not comment on such arrangements.” The cancellations echo broader tensions between Hong Kong’s efforts to maintain its status as a global culture hub, hosting international art fairs and film festivals, and China’s increasingly tight grip on creative expression in the city. Several theaters involved in the screenings did not respond to requests for comment on Wednesday. But in 2013, In an Instagram story, Frake-Waterfield wrote that 30-plus screenings were planned, but “Then ‘something’ seems to [have] caused all these independent chains dropping out!”

Pooh was blacklisted in China after critics pointed out its resemblance to Xi Jinping. The cancellation of the new horror film raises fresh concerns of ...

Still, poor reviews haven’t stopped the movie from raking in big bucks at box offices in markets where it was released: since its debut in January, the low-budget Blood and Honey has earned more than [$3.6 million](https://www.the-numbers.com/movie/Winnie-The-Pooh-Blood-and-Honey-(2023-United-Kingdom)#tab=summary) worldwide. [universally panned](https://www.rottentomatoes.com/m/winnie_the_pooh_blood_and_honey/reviews) the film. “The act of withdrawing a licensed film from public exhibition may not be too surprising in the current situation or indeed has become a decent way of respecting the red line,” he said in an email. [Screen Daily](https://www.screendaily.com/news/horror-winnie-the-pooh-blood-and-honey-pulled-from-hong-kong-release/5180400.article) that they were notified without explanation that 32 theaters across both territories would not go ahead with screenings of filmmaker Rhys Frake-Waterfield’s Winnie the Pooh: Blood and Honey as previously planned. The city’s regulatory Office for Film, Newspaper and Article Administration told TIME that the film passed the local screening assessment and had already been issued the required certificate of approval to be released. These 30+ screens in Hong Kong are the only ones with such issues.”

The screening of British horror film "Winnie the Pooh: Blood and Honey" has been canceled in Hong Kong days before the scheduled release date, according to ...

President Barack Obama with Winnie the Pooh and his friend Tigger went viral in 2013. Hong Kong's culture secretary Kevin Yeung told reporters Wednesday the film had passed the official screening process and that it had been the distributor's decision to cancel the screening. The sudden move prompted concerns over heightened censorship in the former British colony amid tightened control by Beijing.

A new 'Winnie the Pooh' horror movie will not be released in Hong Kong. While no reason was given for it, censorship claims surfaced as the fictional bear ...

The HBO website was also banned in 2018 following British comedian Jamie Oliver’s parody of Chinese president Xi Jinping. But then the script keeps changing so that the film can safely be distributed in China. In 2019, Luo Daiqing, a student studying abroad at the University of Minnesota, was sentenced to six months in prison. One involves Randy getting caught attempting to sell weed in China and getting sent to a work camp. An image of Xi and then Obama walking together had spurred comparisons to Winnie – a portly Xi – walking with Tigger, a lanky Obama. Because he had retweeted an image of Xi Jinping’s face superimposed on Winnie the Pooh’s body. “The act of pulling a licensed film may not be too surprising in the current situation or has become a decent way of respecting the red line. With passing years, Pooh has also become a symbol of dissent in China. Soon after, a photo appeared online of a toy Winnie the Pooh popping out of his own little car. However, people in Hong Kong won’t even get the chance to catch a glimpse of the new slasher movie, as its screening has been abruptly cancelled, just two days before it was to be released. These 30-plus screens in Hong Kong are the only ones with such issues.” The film has showed in over 4,000 cinema screens worldwide.

Public screenings of a slasher film that features Winnie the Pooh were scrapped abruptly in Hong Kong on Tuesday, sparking discussions over increasing ...

[playful taunt of China’s President Xi Jinping](https://nypost.com/2017/07/17/chinese-president-cant-take-a-joke-bans-winnie-the-pooh-on-social-media/) and Chinese censors in the past had briefly banned social media searches for the bear in the country. [“Winnie the Pooh: Blood and Honey”](https://nypost.com/2023/02/16/winnie-the-pooh-blood-and-honey-review-made-by-psychopaths/) on Thursday had been canceled with “great regret” in Hong Kong and neighboring Macao. [increasing censorship in the city.](https://nypost.com/2023/03/18/hong-kong-men-arrested-for-seditious-childrens-book/)

Soke ba zato ba tsammani a bainar jama'a na fim ɗin ban tsoro na Biritaniya "Winnie the Pooh: Blood and Honey" an dakatar da shi ba zato ba tsammani a Hong ...

A cikin shekaru masu zuwa jama’a za su sami damar yin amfani da wasu gumakan al’adun gargajiya da yawa ciki har da ainihin sigar Mickey Mouse, daga “Steamboat Willie,” wanda haƙƙin mallaka zai ƙare shekara mai zuwa. A shekarar 2020, Beijing ta kafa dokar tsaron kasa da ta ce ya zama dole don maido da kwanciyar hankali, kuma a shekarar 2021 Hong Kong ta zartar da wani kudiri na bai wa jami’ai damar hana fina-finan da ake ganin sun saba wa muradun tsaron kasa. Tigger Halin Pooh tun daga lokacin ya zama mai saukin kai, hanya mai ban tsoro don komawa ga shugaban kasar Sin, wanda kwanan nan ya samu wa’adi na uku a kan karagar mulki da ba a taba ganin irinsa ba, da kuma hanyar nuna rashin amincewa. “Shirye-shiryen fina-finai a Hong Kong game da nuna fina-finai guda ɗaya tare da takaddun shaida a cikin wurarensu shine yanke shawara na kasuwanci na gidajen sinima da abin ya shafa, kuma OFNAA ba za ta yi tsokaci kan irin wannan shiri ba,” in ji sanarwar. An kuma soke wani nunin da aka shirya a daren ranar Talata saboda “dalilai na fasaha,” in ji mai shirya fim din, Moviematic a Instagram. Kamfanin rarraba fina-finai na VII Pillars Entertainment ya sanar da “babban nadama” a ranar Talata cewa an soke fitowar fim din a ranar Alhamis a Hong Kong da makwabciyar kasar Sin ta Macau, ba tare da bayar da dalili ba.