Banning the Barbie movie in Kuwait on charges of undermining public morals

Today, Thursday, the Kuwaiti authorities announced the ban on showing the movie “Barbie” in international cinemas, on charges of “undermining public morals.”

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Several major American productions have been met with discomfort in the Middle East in recent months, amid rising LGBTQ visibility in Hollywood.

“The films Barbie and Talk to Me have been banned from broadcasting,” Lavi Subai, head of the Film Censorship Committee, was quoted by the official KUNA news agency.

He stressed that this body linked to the Ministry of Information is keen to “prohibit everything that violates public morals, public order and traditions by introducing foreign ideas into society.”

He confirmed that before making the decision, the authorities had asked to “remove some obscene scenes encouraging unacceptable behavior”, without giving details of the clips in question.

The official said that the movie “Barbie” exceeded one billion dollars at the global box office, so the Kuwaiti censorship will apply to “any film that contradicts the values ​​and traditions of our society.”

The Lebanese Minister of Culture announced, on Wednesday, that he had called for a ban on “Barbie,” considering that it “promotes homosexuality,” against the backdrop of anti-LGBT rhetoric against homosexuals, bisexuals, transgender people, bisexuals, transgender people, and others. Growing up in one of the most liberal countries in the Middle East.

On Monday, the main distributor in Kuwait announced the banning of the “talk to me” program authorities. Australian horror film star Zoe Terrax, a transgender actress who identifies as non-binary, but contains no explicit reference to the LGBT+ movement. Zoé Terakes on social networks called this decision “inhumane” and “targeted”.

Elsewhere in the Gulf, “Barbie” and “Talk to Me” are currently showing in Saudi Arabia and the United Arab Emirates. However, these two countries have also banned films that contain references to LGBT+. In June, the animated Spider-Man movie was banned there, due to a scene in which they said it showed transgender flag.

“Barbie” has not yet been broadcast in Qatar, which has not yet made an official announcement about it.