Government officials in Lebanon and Kuwait have moved to ban Greta Gerwig’s ‘Barbie’ from playing in their countries.
Government officials in Lebanon and Kuwait have moved to ban Warner Bros.‘ “Barbie” after determining that the billion-dollar blockbuster does not align with the countries’ “values” and “beliefs.”
Lebanon’s culture minister, Mohammad Mortada, has urged the country’s general security agency to prevent the movie from playing there, the Associated Press reported Thursday. Mortada said screening “Barbie” in Lebanon would “contradict values of faith and morality” and “promote homosexuality.”
Meanwhile, the Kuwaiti ministry of information’s committee on cinematic censorship announced Tuesday that “Barbie” has been banned from opening in the country. The committee ruled that the comedy about life-sized dolls promotes “ideas and beliefs that are alien to the Kuwaiti society and public order,” according to a statement published by state-run news agency KUNA.
The head of the committee, Lafy Al-Subei’e, noted that the government typically opts to censor select scenes “that run counter to public ethics,” but “Barbie” has been blocked altogether for generally promoting “alien concepts” and “unacceptable behavior.
