Sonic the Hedgehog topped the international box office again in its second weekend, but Chinese cinephiles aren’t likely to be able to see it anytime soon. Paramount Pictures announced today that the film is canceling its February 28 release in the country because of the coronavirus outbreak that still has most cinemas shut down. But the company said that it will still bring the movie to the big screen “at an appropriate time.”
Video game movies such as Warcraft and Detective Pikachu have done well in China. Last year, Detective Pikachu earned US$93.7 million in China, according to Box Office Mojo. And Warcraft, which came out in 2016, made more than US$225 million in China, where the game enjoys incredible popularity. But there’s no guarantee that Sonic would fare as well -- the Sega franchise doesn’t have the same pull in China as the Nintendo and Blizzard titles.
Other major international releases have also recently been canceled in China. Little Women and Jojo Rabbit both canceled releases scheduled for Valentine’s Day, also saying new release dates would be announced later.