字幕表 動画を再生する
-
Professional Wrestler and Actor John Cena Accidentally called Taiwan a country.
-
Is this the end of his career in mainland China?
-
Welcome to China Uncensored.
-
I'm Chris Chappell.
-
Did you know American World Wrestling Entertainment star John Cena speaks Mandarin Chinese?
-
You want the Chinese version, I'll give you that too.
-
I want the gold belt.
-
I am the champion.
-
I will never give up!
-
Like a lot of people who want to get a foothold in the China market, John Cena began learning
-
Mandarin many years ago.
-
Here he is in 2016 introducing WWE in Mainland China.
-
Please allow me to tell you a little about WWE.
-
The WWE marketspace in China wasn't big in the past.
-
I think this is a bad thing.
-
But the problem with pandering to the China market is...sometimes you have to pander to
-
the China market.
-
And that can get complicated when part of the China market is Taiwan.
-
On May 8, John Cena did a promotional interview on Taiwanese television to promote the upcoming
-
film “Fast & Furious 9” —and its world premier in Taiwan.
-
“Taiwan will be the first country to see 'Fast & Furious 9.'”
-
I know, you're shocked.
-
There's going to be a Fast & Furious NINE?!
-
How many of these freaking movies are they going to make?!
-
How do you outdo a submarine car chase?
-
Also shocking: John Cena just called Taiwan a country.
-
“Taiwan will be the first country...”
-
And now John Cena is being canceled in mainland China.
-
Because inadvertently referring to Taiwan as a country instead of a region one time
-
in a language he's just learning to speak...is enough to spark outrage among mainland China's
-
butt-hurt online commentators.
-
You know who you are.
-
You're the ones writing angry comments below this video right now.
-
But before you do, let me just say one thing: Taiwan...is...a...country.
-
It has its own independent, democratic government.
-
It was never part of the People's Republic of China.
-
Taiwan is a country.
-
Now you can finish writing those angry comments.
-
But unlike me, John Cena still has dreams of being in the China market.
-
And that's why instead of defending his comments, he apologized.
-
Hello China, this is John Cena, I have something I must say.
-
During the promotion of Fast & Furious 9 I've done tons and tons of interviews, but made
-
one mistake.
-
I need to say now, it's very very very very very important how much I love and respect
-
China and Chinese people.
-
I am very sorry for my mistake.
-
I am very sorry.
-
Sorry.
-
Bye.
-
John Cena is not afraid to take on Vin Diesel man to man... but he sure wusses out when
-
it comes to the China market.
-
Speaking of Vin Diesel, my favoring Chinese state-run media, The Global Times, contrasted
-
the two men, saying “Vin Diesel said he was grateful to Chinese mainland audiences
-
for supporting the Fast and Furious series, which led him to do something unprecedented:
-
He asked the film company to release Fast & Furious 9 in the Chinese mainland first,
-
as a way of thanking mainland fans.”
-
“Hello my brothers and sisters in China.
-
I am Vin Diesel.
-
Finally I am here.”
-
So, now Fast & Furious 9 opens in mainland China first, instead of Taiwan.
-
Although technically, that's because Taiwan closed theaters due to a recent spike in Covid-19—a
-
plague that came from mainland China...like political correctness.
-
Speaking of the plague of political correctness, this brouhaha over John Cena's comments
-
are part of a long-standing problem for anyone who wants to do business in the China market.
-
It's one of the strongest tactics used by Chinese state-run media to manipulate public
-
opinion or put pressure on brands and businesses.
-
Back in 2016, Tzuyu, a Taiwanese member of the famous K-pop group Twice, was seen waving
-
the ROC flag on a television show.
-
And then her agency, JYP Entertainment, allegedly coerced her into publishing an apology video.
-
There is only one China.
-
The two sides of the strait are one body.
-
I have always identified as a Chinese person, and a proud one at that.
-
(pause…)
-
Wow, that looks sincere.
-
Interestingly enough, that controversy happened right before Taiwan's 2016 elections.
-
The forced apology video didn't really help cross-strait relations.
-
“Taiwan election analysts have said the issue may have contributed as much as 1 to
-
2 percent of the electorate's vote to Ms Tsai, whose DPP traditionally backs independence
-
for the self-governed island.”
-
And the list goes on.
-
Taiwanese actress Vivian Sung issued an apology after being caught calling Taiwan her 'Favorite
-
Country' in an old interview.
-
Zara apologized for simply listing Taiwan as a country on its website.
-
More recently in 2020, “two virtual Japanese YouTube hosts were suspended... from live-streaming
-
for three weeks” by their talent agency.
-
“The suspension came after the pair included Taiwan on a list of countries that had contributed
-
the most to their subscribers, and displayed [Taiwan's] national flag.”
-
So even virtual, animated people can be cancelled for calling Taiwan a country.
-
A South Korean variety TV show was also boycotted by Chinese viewers for showing a Taiwanese
-
flag on a game board, posted next to a Chinese PRC flag.
-
Apologizing to China has almost become the norm over the years for everyone in the entertainment
-
industry.
-
Very few people can stand up to that kind of pressure.
-
Except me, of course.
-
But the trick is...I'm not very entertaining.
-
But what actual market impact have John Cena's comments had?
-
I'll tell you after the break.
-
Welcome back.
-
The public outrage over John Cena calling Taiwan a country shows just how much the China
-
market can be manipulated to punish foreigners.
-
Overnight, the approval rating for 'Fast And Furious 9' dropped by 2%.
-
“Before, it was predicted that the final box office of 'Fast and Furious 9' could
-
reach 2.3 billion yuan.
-
But due to the careless speech, the box office forecast has dropped to 1.5 billion.'”
-
As other articles put it, “Fast And Furious 9 Villain John Cena, Speaks Chinese Well,
-
Likes Laoganma [hot sauce], Yet Supports Taiwan?”
-
“There are too many 'two-faced celebrities' from foreign countries, and they always want
-
to come to the mainland only to make money.
-
Their friendly behavior towards China is not sincere.”
-
Even after John Cena's apology, some Chinese people just didn't buy it.
-
“You better say, in Chinese, 'Taiwan is part of China', or else we will not accept
-
your apology.”
-
“I'm going to pass out.
-
In Taiwan, he says Taiwan province is a country.
-
In the Mainland, he says he respects Chinese people.
-
How two-faced.
-
I don't understand why Chinese people should tolerate him.
-
He's profiting from Chinese people's money with such an unclear political stance, and
-
yet people will still watch his movies?
-
What generation is this!”
-
Of course there were some people who focused on educating the pro wrestler.
-
“Remember from now on, Taiwan is a part of China, Hong Kong is a part of China, they
-
were never independent countries.”
-
“I applaud you for your fast and serious response in standing up to admit your errors.
-
If you could record yourself saying Taiwan is a part of China, that would be even better.
-
I hope you enjoy China and can spend more time understanding China.”
-
Well I'm sure he understands China much better now—after seeing how one sentence
-
has nearly jeopardized the access to China he's worked so hard for.
-
John Cena is the perfect example of what happens when optimistic foreigners think they can
-
have a future in the China market.
-
You spend years learning the language, and building relationships.
-
But it's always a ticking time bomb.
-
And John Cena's day just happened to come.
-
And this is actually a gift to the Chinese Communist Party.
-
They don't really care what John Cena said.
-
You can't offend this man.
-
It's just an opportunity to make a famous foreigner get down on his knees and beg.
-
And it's a lesson to other foreigners to toe the Party line.
-
And now it's time to answer a question from you, viewers who support China Uncensored
-
by contributing through the crowd-funding website Patreon.
-
Aladin Masic asks: "If Xi Jinping was to die from 'natural causes' what would happen
-
to the CCP: continue as normal, or a 180?
-
Xi Jinping's death would mean what for China?"
-
Interesting question, Aladin.
-
This has been a topic of much debate.
-
For example, this think tank essay called The Longer Telegram argues that China would
-
be better without Xi Jinping.
-
That it could reform, if only Xi Jinping were removed.
-
That...is stupid.
-
I'm not defending Xi Jinping.
-
He's done some very bad things.
-
Like lock up Uyhgurs in concentration camps.
-
But all the bad things Xi Jinping has done are just extensions of the terrible things
-
the CCP has been doing for more than 70 years.
-
Like lock up intellectuals.
-
And lock up democracy advocates.
-
And lock up Falun Gong.
-
And lock up Tibetans.
-
Every Chinese leader has at least one group they arbitrarily go after as a way to maintain
-
power.
-
The chance of the Chinese Communist Party reforming itself and becoming a liberal democracy
-
after Xi Jinping dies...is less than my chance of teaming up with John Cena in the next big
-
China movie.
-
So don't fall for it.
-
Regardless of what happens to Xi Jinping, the fundamental problem is the Chinese Communist
-
Party.
-
It's rotten to the core.
-
On the plus side, at least we have Taiwan.
-
Which is a country.
-
Thanks for your question, Aladin.
-
And thank you for watching.
-
Go to Patreon.com/ChinaUncensored and learn how you can support China Uncensored with
-
as little as a dollar per episode.
-
The link is below.
-
I'm Chris Chappell.
-
Thanks for watching.