Hong Kong cinemas will not be screening a new Winnie the Pooh horror film in its territories, according to the movie\u2019s distributor. The movie, which puts a scary spin on the classic Winnie the Pooh children\u2019s show, was released in the U.S. back in February.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
The original, family-friendly version of Winnie the Pooh has been used in humorous references<\/a> to depict to President Xi Jinping<\/a> in recent years. The depiction was born out of a popular 2013 meme showing President Xi and former President Obama alongside two Winnie the Pooh characters.<\/p>\n\n\n\n However, according to Reuters,<\/a> the reference has also been used by some as a symbol of protest against President Xi.<\/p>\n\n\n\n China banned the film<\/a> \u201cChristopher Robin\u201d in 2018. Three years later, Hong Kong implemented a censorship law barring films that \u201cendorse, support, glorify, encourage and incite activities that might endanger national security.\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n Meanwhile, in the U.S., the Xi-Pooh comparison was seen as a gold mine for entertainment, with shows like \u201cSouth Park\u201d making references to the joke<\/a> in several episodes.<\/p>\n\n\n\n Hong Kong officials denied the new Winnie the Pooh film had been censored. The Office for Film, Newspaper and Article Administration said it had issued a certificate of approval for the horror movie, according to Reuters.<\/p>\n\n\n\n However, the film\u2019s director Rhys Frake-Waterfield said \u201cthe cinemas agreed to show it, then all independently come to the same decision overnight. It won\u2019t be a coincidence.\u201d He added \u201cThey claim technical reasons but there is no technical reason. The film has showed in over 4,000 cinema screens worldwide.\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n \u201cWinnie the Pooh: Blood and Honey\u201d went viral when\u00a0its trailer<\/a>\u00a0was released. The horror movie currently has a score of only 4% on the film rating site Rotten Tomatoes.<\/p>\n\n\n\n <\/p>\n\n\n\n