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Evangelion Staff Apologizes for Chinese Movie Poster's Plagiarism
posted on by Kim Morrissy
A poster promoting the Evangelion: 3.0+1.0: Thrice Upon A Time film's release on Chinese streaming platforms is the center of a plagiarism controversy. Fans on social media have posted comparison pictures between Chinese artist Huang Hai's poster and Nico Delort's poster art for the 2009 film Where the Wild Things Are.
— 大哞 (@xiao55344) January 14, 2023
This fact came to the attention of Delort, who commented that the art "didn't lift my style they actually sampled my Where the wild things are poster and clone-stamped the clouds."
The Evangelion official Japanese Twitter account and Chinese Weibo account announced on Sunday that the poster in question has been removed.
The Twitter account added that the visual was created independently in China, and that neither the film's core staff nor Studio Khara had any direct involvement in its production. Several hours later, it published a direct apology from the Beijing ZhuYe Culture Studio. The agency explained that the team used elements without seeking the artist's permission, and the poster went public without the proper checks in place. The team added that it is now in contact with Delort and seeks to recompense.
Delort stated on Twitter that they are working on resolving the issue in private with the distributor.
Huang Hai and his Beijing ZhuYe Culture Studio design firm have created posters for hundreds of Chinese and foreign films, including My Neighbor Totoro, Spirited Away, and Star Wars. His art was used to promote Spirited Away's first theatrical release in China, where it went on to earn 195 million yuan (about 3 billion yen or US$28.36 million) in its first weekend.
Nico Delort is a Paris-based freelance illustrator specializing in black and white scratchboard illustration. They have drawn official posters for the Castlevania: Symphony of the Night game, Disney's The Little Mermaid film, and the Batman Returns film, among others.
Sources: Evangelion official Twitter account (Link 2), Weibo account via Hachima Kikо̄
