Sanrio said Oct. 29 it would end its merchandise collaboration with Japanese television drama VIVANT, following criticism by Chinese state broadcaster CCTV over the show’s depiction of Chinese intelligence personnel.
Sanrio said it was sorry the collaboration had caused concern and that some content tied to the partnership did not align with its corporate philosophy. It said it would end every related initiative and future development and stop promotional activity connected to the collaboration. The company also said it would strengthen its review process for future collaborations. Its statement included the apology: “We deeply apologize for the concern this has caused.”
Sanrio did not cite CCTV’s criticism as the reason for its decision or mention China in its statement. It also did not specify how merchandise already produced would be handled or give an estimate of any financial impact.
CCTV said the drama showed Chinese intelligence personnel torturing Japanese operatives. The broadcaster compared the methods depicted with torture it said Japanese forces used against Chinese resistance fighters during the war, and characterized the portrayal as a distortion of wartime history. CCTV accused the series of “deliberately creating confrontation and stirring up hostility.”
TBS announced the merchandise collaboration June 26. Its schedule set online sales to begin at noon Japan Standard Time (3 a.m. UTC) on July 3, with a pop-up shop at Tokyo Station scheduled to run through July 16.
Global Times reported that Sanrio representatives said the merchandise used characters from VIVANT’s first season. They told the outlet Sanrio did not participate in filming or production and had not known the drama’s plot in advance. Sanrio’s official statement did not address those details.
TBS said the second season began July 26 and was scheduled to run for two consecutive cours, with episodes on Sundays. The program page lists Nov. 1 as the next episode.
