In an abrupt reversal of policy, China’s Film Bureau have ordered all venues that had reopened to cease trading immediately

All Chinese cinemas have been ordered to close again after trading began to resume. Late on Friday evening, China’s Film Bureau issued a decree ordering all venues to shut down, offering no reason for the change in policy.

Around 600 movie theatres out of the country’s some 70,000 screens had reopened in the past 10 days and although business had been minimal, it is believed that fears over a possible second wave of coronavirus infections are central to the decision.

Harry Potter and A Dog's Journey: Chinese cinemas detail plans to lure back audiences after coronavirus Read more

Last week, the Film Bureau unveiled optimistic plans of a programme of crowd-pleasers to try to lure audiences back to cinemas, including new releases such as A Dog’s Purpose, patriotic blockbusters such as Wolf Totem and a rerelease of the first Harry Potter film.

All profits were due go to the venues, with producers and distributors waiving their cut.