‘Ghostbusters’ Denied Theatrical Release In China | ET Canada 

China’s not afraid of no ghosts! Melissa McCarthy and co. won’t be seen bustin’ ghosts in China. The highly-anticipated “Ghostbusters” reboot has been denied a release in the world’s most populous nation, due in part to the country’s obscure censorship laws.

China’s censorship law prohibits movies that “promote cults or superstition” which has led to bans against movies that depict ghosts or supernatural beings in a semi-realistic manner. “Ghostbusters” isn’t the first movie to be banned for having ghosts and ghouls on screen. The movie joins other films that have suffered similar fates, like “Pirates Of The Caribbean: Dead Man’s Chest” which was banned for its on-screen ghouls and cannibalism, “Deadpool” for its depiction of graphic violence, “Back To The Future” for showing time travel, and “The Da Vinci Code” for showing “blasphemous content.”

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In anticipation of censorship rules, Sony, the studio behind “Ghostbusters”, had removed the Chinese character for the word “ghost” from the reboot’s title in the country. The literal translation of the film’s Chinese title is “Super Power Dare Die Team”, similar to the 1984 original film’s title, “Ghost Catcher Dare Die Team”. Neither the original nor 1989 sequel played theatrically in China, which also has industry insiders speculating that the film’s association with the supernatural isn’t the sole cause of of its dismissal from a theatrical release.

“It’s been confirmed that ‘Ghostbusters’ won’t be coming to China, because they think it’s not really that attractive to Chinese audiences,” a Chinese film executive tells

. “Most of the Chinese audience didn’t see the first and second movies, so they don’t think there’s much market for it here.”

“Ghostbusters” hits theatres everywhere but China on July 15.

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