Hollywood’s Box Office Blow: China Plans To “Moderately Reduce” US Film Releases

President Donald Trump announced an increase in tariffs on Chinese goods to 125% on Wednesday, shortly after Beijing retaliated by raising tariffs on U.S. goods to 84%. As of Thursday morning, traders and investors remain on edge, monitoring Bloomberg Terminals and X news feeds like hawks for signs of a potential Chinese response. So far, nothing substantial has crossed the wires yet—except for news that Hollywood appears to be in the crosshairs. 

Bloomberg reports that Beijing officials will “moderately reduce” the number of U.S. movies allowed into China—the second-largest film market globally, which has been crucial to Hollywood’s survival. 

“The wrong action of the US government to abuse tariffs on China will inevitably further reduce the domestic audience’s favorability toward American films,” the National Film Administration wrote in a statement, adding, ”We will follow market rules, respect the audience’s choices, and moderately reduce the number of American films imported.” 

Data from NFA shows that China imported an average of 10 Hollywood movies per year over the last three decades. A reduction in Hollywood films would severely dent studios in the U.S. 

Chris Fenton, author of “Feeding the Dragon: Inside the Trillion Dollar Dilemma Facing Hollywood, the NBA, & American Business,” was quoted by Singapore-based CNA News, who warned that the move by China was a “super high-profile way to make a statement of retaliation with almost zero downside for China“.

On Tuesday, two Chinese bloggers leaked potential countermeasures that Beijing could unleash on the U.S., such as banning imports of U.S. poultry and Hollywood films. 

Hollywood studios once looked to China and its massive film market to boost box office performance. But in recent years, domestic films have outperformed Hollywood flicks.

Most Americans couldn’t care less about this development, as studios have destroyed any credibility with a decade of woke movies and shows. 

China plans a ban on Hollywood movies as part of its trade war retaliation pic.twitter.com/qkMinOFdwi

— zerohedge (@zerohedge) April 8, 2025

The latest Hollywood flick to bomb.

Hollywood Claims Rachel Zegler Is “An Icon” Despite Epic Snow White Bomb https://t.co/jLahboMiND

— zerohedge (@zerohedge) April 1, 2025

The restrictions arrive just before the summer box office season kicks off or a little more than a month before Mission Impossible’s next big release.