The film, directed by Daniel Espinosa and starring Hardy and Gary Oldman, is adapted from Tom Rob Smith's novel about a series of grisly child murders set in the Stalin-era Soviet Union.
Culture Ministry bosses, who claim the movie distorts historical facts, have withdrawn plans for its release this weekend, after a preview raised concerns about Hardy's character and the plot, set in Stalin-era Russia, reported Deadline.
A statement suggests the film's release in the run-up to the 70th anniversary of the end of World War Two is "unacceptable".