Regional versions of Justice League misses release date as CBFC yet to certify them
Ben Affleck and Gal Gadot's Justice League may be packed with superheroes, but their superpowers can't ensure the release of the film's regional versions in India. While the original hits theatres today, the Hindi, Tamil and Telugu versions are yet to be granted a censor certificate. A source reveals that Warner Bros (India), the distributors of the film, have been told that the Censor Board couldn't watch the film as they have a backlog of movies to be censored.
Justice League
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Says a trade source, "It's outrageous that a film has been postponed because of a delay in the censor certificate. When people from the distribution company expressed their dissatisfaction, members of the Censor Board turned the tables on them and pointed out how they hadn't submitted the film 68 days prior to its release. While the rule is a part of the 1952 Act, it has never been implemented."
Considering a chunk of a movie's collections are earned over the opening weekend, the superhero film will take a severe beating. "On an average, dubbed versions make for 40-50 per cent of a film's earnings. This will have a huge impact on Justice League's revenues. Warner Bros is staring at huge losses."
Trade analyst Atul Mohan points out that such a delay implies losses for the government too. "It loses out on 28 per cent GST for the projected business at the box office. The South is a big market for Hollywood films [with subtitles]. So it's a lose-lose situation for all parties," he says. Denzil Dias (vice president and managing director, Warner Bros Pictures India) says, "We're working with the CBFC to resolve the issue and get our regional language films censored at the earliest."
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