China has postponed the release of two popular Japanese films, Cells at Work! and Crayon Shin-chan the Movie: Super Hot! The Spicy Kasukabe Dancers, due to a dispute between the two countries over Prime Minister Sanae Takaichi's remarks about Taiwan. The delay in the release of these films comes as the row deepens, with Chinese state media CCTV reporting that ticket sales have fallen. The delay has been attributed to an assessment of the overall outlook of Japanese films in China and the sentiment among Chinese audiences. The animated comedy Crayon Shin-chan the Movie: Super Hot! The Spicy Kasukabe Dancers was set to be released in the coming weeks, while Cells at Work! is a live-action movie based on a manga about human blood cells fighting off viruses. The state-controlled media outlet also reported that Demon Slayer: Infinity Castle has faced 'strong dissatisfaction among Chinese audiences' in the wake of Takaichi's remarks. Takaichi, who has been a vocal critic of China and its activities in the region, suggested earlier this month that Tokyo could take military action if Beijing attacked Taiwan. Beijing has since urged its citizens to avoid travel to Japan and told students to reconsider studying there, citing safety risks. Japanese tourism, airline and retail stocks fell sharply as investors weighed the impact of China's response. China is a key source of tourists travelling to Japan, with almost 7.5m visitors in the first nine months of this year. Beijing sees Taiwan as a breakaway province that will, in time, be part of the country. But many Taiwanese consider themselves to be part of a separate nation, although most are in support of keeping the status quo in which Taiwan neither declares independence from China nor unites with it.
