Behind China’s booming box-office numbers, a silent war over trademark rights is playing out in courtrooms across the country. These real-life infringement battles expose the gaps in film-industry IP protection—and spotlight the law’s growing resolve to defend creative rights.
A film is an IP “bundle”
A single movie is a treasure trove of overlapping intellectual-property rights; its value is almost entirely built on them.
Copyright (authors’ rights) is the core. It protects concrete expression:
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The screenplay (as a literary work).
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The music—lyrics and score (as musical works).
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Character designs, costumes, sets (as artistic works).
Trademarks power brand-building. They protect the commercial identity that helps audiences navigate a crowded market and underpins merchandising—toys, apparel, games—while stopping free-riders. Typical marks include:
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Film titles (e.g., The Wandering Earth, The Battle at Lake Changjin).
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Signature character names (e.g., Nezha, Detective Chinatown).
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Distinctive logos (e.g., the Marvel Studios opener).
I. Wolf Warrior franchise: a trademark milestone
While Wolf Warrior 2 smashed box-office records with RMB 5.68 billion in 2017, its trademark enforcement case set a legal benchmark.
Director Wu Jing discovered several companies had registered “Wolf Warrior” as corporate names without authorization, including a Chengdu tech firm that also used the name to promote online games. Wu filed suit; the court ruled the conduct constituted unfair competition, ordered an immediate halt to the infringing name, and awarded RMB 300,000 in damages.
The ruling was historic: it was the first time a Chinese court confirmed that, once a film title reaches a certain level of fame, it can be shielded under the Anti-Unfair Competition Law.
II. Ne Zha: merchandising infringement
Light Chaser’s 2019 hit Ne Zha faced rampant trademark abuse. A Xiamen toy company churned out unlicensed figurines bearing both the character’s image and the “Nezha” mark. In 2020, Light Chaser sued in the Xiamen Intermediate People’s Court.
The court held the defendant liable for trademark infringement, issued an immediate stop order, and ordered compensation of RMB 500,000 for economic loss and legal costs.
Cases like these underscore the judiciary’s determination to safeguard film-related merchandising and prove that, in the knowledge economy, a nation’s respect for IP is the true yardstick of its film industry’s maturity and competitiveness.
