Lawmakers accused the US Film industry of acquiescing to China to sell tickets
EXCLUSIVE: Several Republican lawmakers are accusing Hollywood of once again yielding to the Chinese Communist Party (CCP) regarding the Barbie movie. They claim that the movie includes a map that appears to support Beijing’s control over the South China Sea.
Representative Mike Gallagher, a Republican from Wisconsin and chairman of the House select committee on China stated, “Even though it’s just a map in a Barbie movie, the fact that it seemingly promotes China’s unlawful territorial claims shows the influence the CCP holds over Hollywood, as they strive to please Chinese censors.”
The highly anticipated summer blockbuster, featuring Margot Robbie and Ryan Gosling, has become entangled in a prominent geopolitical conflict of our time.
Vietnamese authorities declared that the Warner Bros. movie would be prohibited within their country due to a map included in the film that allegedly supports China’s expansive territorial claims in the South China Sea. Officials in the Philippines have also hinted at the possibility of taking similar action.
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Gallagher urged Warner Bros. to address the controversy and make it clear that the map in question was not meant to support any territorial claims. He emphasized that it was simply created by a previously plastic anthropomorphic doll.
Representative Mike Waltz, a Republican from Florida, criticized the U.S. film industry for what he perceived as blatant “hypocrisy.” He accused them of catering to China’s large audience while disregarding the country’s concerning human rights record.
“This is yet another shameful instance of Hollywood being influenced by communist China. It not only undermines our national security but also exposes the film industry’s clear hypocrisy regarding social justice and human rights,” Waltz expressed to Fox News Digital.
The depicted boundary line on the map represents China’s claim to a significant portion of the South China Sea, which is also disputed by Vietnam, Malaysia, Indonesia, Brunei, the Philippines, and Taiwan. The inclusion of this map in “Barbie movie” highlights the growing controversy surrounding Hollywood’s dependence on China, as China has become a major market rivaling the United States in recent years.
Critics of the film industry have accused studio executives of disregarding China’s human rights violations in order to profit from movie sales in the country.
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A Republican lawmaker, Rep. Jim Banks from Indiana, who serves on the China committee alongside Gallagher, made a similar accusation. He claimed that studio executives were essentially supporting China’s wrongdoing.
Banks stated, “We were able to defeat the Soviet Union through cultural influence with products like Coke, Levi’s, and James Dean. In the new Cold War with China, we need not only military superiority but also soft power superiority. However, that becomes impossible when Hollywood collaborates with the Chinese Communist Party. Movie executives who support this murderous communist regime are putting our national security at risk and should face consequences.”
Sen. Marsha Blackburn from Tennessee criticized the inclusion of the pro-China map in the “Barbie movie“, deeming it wrong both legally and morally.
In 2016, an international tribunal in The Hague declared that China’s claims to extensive parts of the South China Sea had no legal basis. However, Beijing disregarded the ruling at that time.
Blackburn stated, “Once again, Hollywood and the left prioritize selling films in communist China over condemning the regime’s severe human rights violations. The depiction of a map in the Barbie movie endorsing Beijing’s claims to the South China Sea is legally and morally incorrect. , and it should be treated seriously.”