Algeria has banned ‘Barbie’ for “damaging morals”
Algerian cinemas have taken the blockbuster film Barbie off their screens amid concerns over its portrayal of “damaging morals”. Having been showcased for three successful weeks and pulling in approximately 40,000 viewers, the movie has abruptly disappeared from the nation’s major cinema listings after an intervention from the culture ministry.
An anonymous official source informed Reuters the decision to pull the film was made as it appeared to “promote homosexuality and did not align with Algeria’s religious and cultural beliefs”. The news of this ban was initially broken by news outlet 24H Algérie.
According to Reuters, the government informed the local distributor MD Ciné and the major cinemas about the film’s withdrawal, citing reasons of “damaging morals”. This isn’t the first time Barbie has faced a ban – the film, which experienced a ban in Kuwait, has also encountered challenges in Lebanon.
A Kuwaiti Ministry of Information representative expressed to the BBC that the film seemed to “promulgate ideas and beliefs that are alien to Kuwaiti society and public order”.
In Lebanon, the Culture Minister, Mohammad Mortada, has requested a ban, stating it “promotes homosexuality and transsexuality” before adding that Barbie “supports rejecting a father’s guardianship, undermines and ridicules the role of the mother, and questions the importance of marriage and family”.
Lebanese censors are currently reviewing the film, which remains absent from their cinema schedules. Despite these setbacks, the Margot Robbie-led Barbie has taken the global box office by storm this summer, with director Greta Gerwig breaking records as the first female director to make over $1 billion worldwide.
Globally, Barbie continues its meteoric rise to becoming one of the most profitable and popular films of the 21st century.
Watch the trailer below.
Never Miss A Scene
The Far Out Film Newsletter
All the latest film news from the independent voice of culture.
Straight to your inbox.