Fast & Furious 9 star John Cena apologises to China after calling Taiwan a country

China became the largest film market last year

John Cena attends an F9 promotional event on 31 January 2020 in Miami, Florida (Dia Dipasupil/Getty Images)

John Cena has apologised to China after referring to Taiwan as a country in a promotional interview.

According to CNN, the actor made the comments while speaking to the Taiwanese network TVBS, stating: “Taiwan is the first country that can watch F9.”

Taiwan has its own, democratically elected government, but China claims it as a breakaway province. In January this year, China warned that attempts by Taiwan to pursue independence would “mean war”.

On Tuesday (25 May), Cena apologised on the Chinese social media platform Weibo. According to Bloomberg, the former wrestler told viewers: “I made a mistake. I must say now that, very very very importantly, I love and respect China and Chinese people.”

China became the largest film market last year, overtaking the US, Bloomberg reported in February this year. That market is expected to become even more decisive as film studios attempt to restore box office earnings after industry shutdowns prompted by the pandemic.

F9, also known as Fast & Furious 9, is scheduled for release on 24 June 2021 in the UK, and 25 June 2021 in the US.