Roland Emmerich’s 2009 disaster epic became one of the most striking examples of its genre. With impressive visual effects, grand-scale sets, and a star-studded cast, ‘2012′ captivated audiences worldwide and achieved major box office success.
The film plunges viewers into a world of global cataclysms foretold by the Mayans. The story follows writer Jackson Curtis, played by John Cusack, who tries to save his family amid planetary chaos. The cast also includes Chiwetel Ejiofor, Woody Harrelson, and Amanda Peet, while director Roland Emmerich — already known for Independence Day and The Day After Tomorrow — once again delivers large-scale disaster sequences.
Despite its international popularity, the film sparked a fierce backlash in North Korea, where it was declared “enemy number one.” The reason for the ban was surprisingly not directly related to its apocalyptic imagery. In North Korea, cinema is a powerful tool of state propaganda, tightly controlled by authorities to preserve national values and ideology. Any works deemed immoral or subversive are immediately censored.
The issue with Emmerich’s Hollywood blockbuster lay in its title: the year 2012 coincided with the 100th anniversary of the birth of Kim Il Sung, the founder of the North Korean state. The regime had proclaimed that year as sacred for the people of the “rising global superpower.” Associating this centennial celebration with the end of the world was deemed unacceptable by the leadership.
The film was officially banned, and any illegal copies were to be confiscated immediately. Moreover, real arrests followed: several people were charged with “serious provocation against the state” for possessing or viewing the film.
Not Just North Korea
Interestingly, North Korea wasn’t the only party to take issue with the blockbuster. The Catholic Church of Brazil also filed a complaint against Columbia Pictures. The reason was the depiction and destruction of Rio de Janeiro’s famous Christ the Redeemer statue without official permission from the archdiocese. Although the producers’ request was denied, the scene remained in the final cut, prompting dissatisfaction from church representatives.
In the end, the global success of 2012 was accompanied by major controversies and unprecedented bans — not only due to its catastrophic subject matter, but also because of the political and religious symbolism it invoked.
