BEIJING (AP) — The Chinese conglomerate that owns Hollywood studio Legendary Entertainment has denied a report by a U.S. website that its chairman was detained by Chinese authorities.

Wanda Group on Monday rejected as "malicious slander" the report by Bowen Press, which cited unidentified sources, that Wang Jianlin was temporarily detained last week after returning from a business trip abroad and was barred from leaving China.

The report follows the disappearance of a Chinese entrepreneur in Hong Kong, reports that others have been questioned by authorities and tighter government control over investments abroad.

Wanda expanded aggressively abroad, buying Legendary and the AMC cinema chain, but has reversed course in recent months and announced the sale of hotels and a chain of theme parks to reduce its debt.