Lebanon bans Greta Gerwig’s ‘Barbie’ for its homosexual material
The billion-dollar Barbie movie is due to be banned in Lebanon, whilst Kuwait has already confirmed that the film will not be screened in the country due to its depiction of homosexuality.
Speaking on Wednesday, August 9th, Mohammad Mortada, Lebanon’s culture minister stated that Barbie appeared to “promote homosexuality and sexual transformation” and “contradicts values of faith and morality”.
Continuing, Mortada added, “The film goes against moral and religious values in Lebanon, as it encourages perversity and gender transformation while calling for the rejection of patriarchy and ridiculizing the role of mothers”.
Greta Gerwig’s Barbie movie has caused a worldwide phenomenon, encouraging fans back into the cinema in their droves. Buoyed by the success of Christopher Nolan’s Oppenheimer, the duo benefited from the viral sensation of ‘Barbenheimer’ which saw people encouraging each other to view both movies, which were released simultaneously on July 21st, on the very same day.
In response to Mortada’s comments, the Reuters news agency reported, “Based on Mortada’s move, Interior Minister Bassam Mawlawi in turn asked General Security’s censorship committee, which falls under the interior ministry and is traditionally responsible for censorship decisions, to review the film and give its recommendation”.
Initially supposed to hit cinemas in the Middle East on July 19th, the film was pushed back to the end of August with a review of the LGBTQ+ material being the main reason for its delay.
Take a look at the trailer for the sensational blockbuster below.
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