This movie is headed back to theaters with more scenes despite China's attempts to censor it
Celebrated film auteur Quentin Tarantino doesn’t kowtow to anyone when it comes to the creative direction of his movies, not even the Chinese government.
"Once Upon a Time in Hollywood" will be back in theaters starting Friday, but this time with even more footage and additional scenes, Sony announced on Wednesday.
Despite an already whopping runtime of 2 hours and 41 minutes and pressure from Chinese censors to cut out portions of the film’s Bruce Lee scenes, Tarantino’s newest cut of the film will feature 10 more minutes of footage and four additional scenes, Sony reports.
The film, which stars the likes of Brad Pitt and Leonardo DiCaprio, will hit theaters once again at 1,000 venues throughout the U.S. and Canada.
Tarantino dug his heels after Chinese censors asked for a recut of the film to exclude scenes featuring the portrayal of Chinese martial arts expert-turned-Hollywood action star Bruce Lee.
The ninth of Tarantino’s films, centered on the 1969 real-life story of the Hollywood Manson Family murders was initially approved for a Chinese release on Friday, however censors there quickly put their foot down on scenes featuring the portrayal of Lee.
Lee’s family voiced concerns regarding late martial artist’s portrayal in the film, with Lee’s daughter, Shannon Lee, appealing to China’s National Film Administration in an effort to make drastic changes to her father’s depiction, according to China’s Film Bureau.
Meanwhile, the critically acclaimed director outright objected to the censorship, and instead defended the film’s portrayal of Lee.
“Bruce Lee was kind of an arrogant guy,” Tarantino told reporters during an August press conference in Moscow. “The way he was talking, I didn’t just make a lot of that up.”
The re-release happens to come right by awards season, with "Once Upon a Time in Hollywood" collecting $368 million in box office sales worldwide from a $90 million budget.