The ending of the recent animated cartoon movie Minions: The Rise of Gru has been amended for its domestic release in China. The Chinese authorities amplified an addendum in which Wild Knuckles, the main character in the latest film, was caught by police and served 20 years in jail.
Viewers noted some differences between the ending of the original version and the version played in Chinese cinemas
The fifth film in the Despicable Me franchise tells the tale of lovable villain Gru (voiced by Steve Carell) and his life as a criminal in Seventies San Francisco, learning and conspiring with his mentor, Wild Knuckles (Alan Arkin). In the international version of the movie, Gru and Wild Knuckles escape punishment for their misdeeds after Knuckles fakes his own death.
However, according to users on the social media site Weibo, an amended version is being shown to Chinese viewers. It includes an added note that Wild Knuckles was ultimately caught by police and served 20 years in prison.
His time behind bars ends up being useful, as he reforms his life, discovers his “love of acting” and establishes an amateur theatre troupe for the other inmates. In the reported Chinese ending, Gru “returned to his family” and it was claimed that “his biggest accomplishment is being the father to his three girls”.
The film’s alternative ending has been mocked by viewers
The change comes after Chinese censors edited a popular Hollywood film to make it more politically correct, resulting in some viewers questioning the changes. According to social listening company Meltwater, the incident saw a total of 6.69k mentions across online platforms over the past seven days, with 4.24k unique mentions on Twitter. The incident has drawn 56% negative sentiments, mostly from Twitter, followed by Pinterest, Reddit, and online forums.
