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Japanese singer Maki Otsuki was forcibly removed from the stage during a performance in Shanghai, marking the most dramatic escalation yet in a series of cancellations targeting Japanese culture in China.
Otsuki was performing the One Piece ending song “Memories” at the Bandai Namco Festival 2025 when the stage screens and lighting were cut simultaneously, with allegations that Chinese officials manually tripped the power breakers to stop the show.
Following the blackout, two staff members reportedly confiscated Otsuki’s microphone and physically escorted her off the stage, bringing the event to an abrupt and chaotic end.
The forced removal of Otsuki is part of a widening crackdown of Japanese events in the country, with music artists and their concerts being hit the hardest. Pop superstar Ayumi Hamasaki and singer-songwriter Kokia have also faced last-minute cancellations of their scheduled concerts in China.
Anime and anime-related events too haven’t been spared. The China Film Administration has frozen approvals for new Japanese movie titles, while the release of at least six previously approved works, including major anime films like Detective Conan: The Time-Bombed Skyscraper, the latest Crayon Shin-chan film, and also the live-action adaptation of Cells at Work!, has been postponed indefinitely.
These delays and restrictions are concerning for the anime industry as historically, China has been a box office juggernaut for the medium; Makoto Shinkai’s Suzume earned over half of its USD 221 million global total from Chinese theaters, while Studio Ghibli’s The Boy and the Heron pulled in USD 109 million (nearly 40% of its worldwide gross) from the country.
Furthermore, Sony’s sales in China, which spans gaming, music, and films, reached 1.2 trillion yen (USD 7.7 billion) in the last fiscal year, while Sanrio saw its revenue in the region nearly triple to 15.3 billion yen due to licensing deals with Alibaba.
Due to the current situation, uncertainty now looms over the current theatrical run of Demon Slayer: Kimetsu no Yaiba – Infinity Castle too. The film grossed an impressive USD 49.9 million in its opening weekend, ranking among the top debuts for a Japanese title in China.
The cultural freeze serves as a retaliatory measure following remarks by Japanese Prime Minister Sanae Takaichi regarding Taiwan. Tensions spiked after Takaichi’s comments on Nov. 7, in which she explicitly stated that a Chinese military attack on the democratically governed island would threaten Japan’s survival, and could trigger a direct military response from Tokyo.
When asked if the wave of cancellations was a direct response to this, Chinese Foreign Ministry spokesperson Mao Ning stated that Takaichi’s comments had “hurt Chinese people’s sentiments” and damaged bilateral cooperation. “Japan should correct its wrongdoing and stop creating trouble on issues related to China,” Mao said, stopping just short of officially confirming a state-sanctioned boycott.
The disruptions also extend to the theater stage as well, with the Pretty Guardian Sailor Moon musical tour recently scrapping its entire run of performances across Beijing, Hangzhou, and Shanghai.
Source: Japan Times, Reuters
Has anyone else seen that news about the One Piece artist getting forced off stage in China? Wild stuff. I was literally reading it while trying to check out some nicotine pouches online, and of course my internet died mid-purchase. Perfect timing lol.
Yeah, that whole situation felt unreal. Politics messing with events again. As for your checkout issue, that happened to me too once you try to buy something and boom, the internet collapses like a bad gambling streak.