Beijing censors another Hollywood movie

Chinese censors have changed the ending of the latest ‘Despicable Me’ prequel for domestic release, leading to a canon-breaking plot hole.

‘Minions: The Rise of Gru’ tells the story of how the record-setting franchise’s bad guy, Gru, came to power. It opened in China on Friday, taking the third spot at the box office. 

However, those who went to see did not get the same ending as the rest of the world. In a series of subtitled scenes after the credits, Chinese viewers were told that Gru goes on to become one of the good guys “dedicated to raising his family.” 

The issue is that ‘Rise of Gru’ is a prequel to 2010’s ‘Despicable Me’, where Gru is portrayed as the biggest baddie in the world. Although he does eventually come around to being a good guy, it is only in the movie's latter stages.

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The original ending of the latest movie showed the character learning how to trick the police to avoid getting caught as he sets out on his path to becoming one of the world’s best-known super-villains.

Another addition to the Chinese version is a post-credit scene that suggests Gru’s mentor, Wild Knuckles, is locked up for 20 years for his crimes instead of evading capture by faking his death.

The Chinese version goes on to say that Knuckles becomes a “reformed man” and discovers his love of acting, setting up a theatrical troupe for his fellow inmates.

The change marks a recent trend in Chinese censorship, which has taken a shine to adding subtitled post-credit scenes to popular films, some of which completely change the story of the original.

Earlier this year, China’s Tencent Video decided to scrap the final scene of the 1999 blockbuster ‘Fight Club’, which showed the bombing of a number of corporate buildings by a group of nihilistic anarchists. 

In its online release in China, viewers were instead presented with a caption that suggested all the criminals in the movie were arrested and their plot was foiled by quick-witted police. It also stated that the main character, who was suffering from a split personality disorder, was sent to a lunatic asylum to undergo psychological treatment. Tencent later restored most of the ending following backlash.