'South Park' creators issue a mocking 'apology' to China after the show was reportedly banned in the
- The "South Park" creators Matt Stone and Trey Parker issued an "apology" to China through the show's Twitter account on Monday.
- The statement came after The Hollywood Reporter reported that "South Park" had been banned from China's internet.
- The most recent episode of the animated series, "Band in China," mocked the country's censorship.
- Visit Business Insider's homepage for more stories.
The creators of "South Park" have issued an "apology" to China after the show's most recent episode mocked the country's censorship and Hollywood's reliance on its theatrical market for movies.
The official "South Park" Twitter account on Monday tweeted the comedic statement below:
OFFICIAL APOLOGY TO CHINA FROM TREY PARKER AND MATT STONE.
"Like the NBA, we welcome the Chinese censors into our homes and into our hearts. We too love money more than freedom and democracy. Xi doesn't look just like Winnie the Pooh at all. Tune into our 300th episode this Wednesday at 10! Long live the Great Communist Party of China! May this autumn's sorghum harvest be bountiful! We good now China?"
The statement came after The Hollywood Reporter on Monday reported "South Park" has been banned from the Chinese internet and that videos, mentions, and discussion forums for the Comedy Central animated series had been removed or shut down.
The episode "Band in China" references China's crackdown on Winnie the Pooh imagery, which has become a symbol of resistance to the country's leading Communist Party and its leader, Xi Jinping. The Disney movie "Christopher Robin" did not even play in China last year.
The statement from Parker and Stone also mocked the NBA's apology to China after the Houston Rockets general manager Daryl Morey tweeted on Friday (and then deleted) an image with the slogan "Fight for freedom, stand with Hong Kong" in solidarity with the Hong Kong protesters. The NBA issued a statement that said it was "regrettable" that Morey's views "deeply offended many of our friends and fans in China."
Watch: Mind the gap on this 500-foot-high bridge in China
ncG1vNJzZmivp6x7o8HSoqWeq6Oeu7S1w56pZ5ufony0u9Stn2aokae4bq%2FRnpitp6Koeqq%2F0q6cZqWfmLhurc%2Boo6ifqWLBsHnCoaCnmV2Ws7Wx0WaZmqZdZ31yhYxqZw%3D%3D