2023-06-16 10:30:14
The movie “Spider-Man: Across the Spider-Verse” was scheduled to start showing on major screens across the UAE from June 22, but it was removed from the list of films. Which will soon be shown on the websites of cinemas in the Gulf country.
In response to a question by Agence France-Presse, “VOX Cinemas” said that the film “will not be released in the UAE,” without explaining the reason.
For its part, Majid Al Futtaim, which runs VOX Cinemas, did not respond to a request for comment on the matter.
The film, which was shown for the first time at the end of last month in California, in the United States, sparked a great controversy in the UAE on social media because of a scene in which a banner appeared with the words “Protection of Transgender Children” written in English.
And a post that was shared hundreds of times on Twitter read, “Attention to mothers and fathers, the new Disney movie ‘Spider-Man’, which will be shown in cinemas on the 22nd, promotes homosexuality and transgenderism. Pay attention to your children.”
In 2021, the UAE confirmed that it will not censor films that are shown in cinemas, provided that +21 years is included in the age classification of films to alert viewers who wish to watch them in their original version.
And the Emirates Media Council, which is the media regulating body, announced on Monday that it “will not allow the circulation or publication of content contrary to the values and principles of the UAE and the standards of media content in force in the country.” He did not elaborate on the reasons for issuing his statement, nor did he respond to AFP’s request for comment.
And last year, several countries in the Middle East, including the UAE, banned the screening of the movie “Light Year”, which is the first work produced by the American “Pixar” studios, which includes a scene of a kiss between two women.
In neighboring Saudi Arabia, AMC, the operator of local cinemas, confirmed to AFP that the film would not be shown, without revealing the reason. The General Authority for Audiovisual Media did not immediately respond to AFP’s questions.
VOX Cinemas removed the film from the list of films that will soon be shown on its sites in Bahrain, Qatar, the Sultanate of Oman and Kuwait.
© 2023 AFP
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