10 Banned Disney Movies
#10: “Beauty and the Beast” (2017)
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Disney’s live-action remake of this beloved classic broke ground by portraying supporting character LeFou as gay. But the move also stirred considerable controversy, both in the US and especially overseas. The moment in question lasts for just a few seconds in a sprawling, two-hour fantasy film, and doesn’t involve anything particularly overt. But just the implication was enough to get the entire movie withdrawn from theaters in Kuwait. The Film Censorship Board in Malaysia demanded that the moment be cut, but Disney refused. In the end, Disney had to bump up the movie’s age rating for Malaysia cinemas.
#9: “Pirates of the Caribbean: Dead Man's Chest” (2006)
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Jack Sparrow’s second voyage on the high-seas sailed all the way to a billion dollars at the box office, and all without dropping anchor in China. Despite the brand’s popularity, the pirate couldn’t dock in the country due to the film’s supernatural content and violence, especially the inclusion of ghosts and cannibals. Though the movie far from endorses the diet of the latter, it seems that seeing Jack and Will strung up like roasted pigs was too much for censors - sinking “Dead Man’s Chest” in the country.
#8: “Eternals” (2021)
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The ‘marvel’-ous relationship between Phastos and husband Ben Stoss ruffled a few feathers. The film had an uphill battle from the start, since comments made years prior by director Chloe Zhao barred it from a Chinese release. However, other countries refused to play it due to its inclusion of the MCU’s first openly gay hero. The representation led to some intense standoffs with overseas censors. The film was banned in Saudi Arabia, Kuwait, Qatar, Bahrain and Oman, where fans were left waiting eternally for release. Disney ended up caving in to calls for cuts in a few other countries though, removing all love scenes.
#7: “Onward” (2020)
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Another small step forward in representation, another country-wide ban. The only mention of LGBTQ+ content in “Onward” comes when Lena Waithe’s character Specter makes an innocuous comment about her girlfriend's daughter. It’s a throwaway line in the movie, but stopped the film from moving “onward” to theaters in some countries, including Kuwait, Oman, Qatar, and Saudi Arabia. In other countries, such as Russia, the film was allowed, but edited, changing the line to “my sister's daughter” or “my partner's daughter”.
#6: “Mary Poppins” (1964)
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A spoonful of sugar didn’t help this classic feature go down. After floating with her umbrella for over 30 years, censors finally grounded Ms. Poppins, but not due to any cultural insensitivity or controversial political stance. Instead, the Chinese government made a blanket ban against media that blended live-action and animated content. Why? Well, apparently, it was a move to help foster the country’s own animation industry without influence from foreign works. Oddly, it seems they only targeted hybrid-features and not fully-animated films.
#5: “Doctor Strange in the Multiverse of Madness” (2022)
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Sam Raimi’s sequel to “Doctor Strange” introduced superhero America Chavez into the MCU. The character is queer in the comics, and has two mothers - which set off red flags in the Persian Gulf countries Saudi Arabia, Kuwait, and Qatar. The film board in Egypt was also nonplussed. All refused to release the film. Saudi Arabia’s film board asked Disney to cut the references to Chavez’s mothers, but Disney refused. The movie was also banned in China, apparently for including a yellow newspaper box for The Epoch Times, which is blocked in mainland China. It’s a shame that out of all the multiverses Chavez can teleport to, she found herself in one where her live-action debut was so controversial.
#4: “West Side Story” (2021)
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Steven Spielberg’s modern reimagining of this beloved musical came with a few adjustments to the source material. Notably, the standout role of Anybodys was reinterpreted as transgender. This update fit well with the character’s journey, and allowed nonbinary actor iris menas a chance to represent their community. However, it also meant that the film faced bans from Persian Gulf countries. Disney resisted calls for cuts, although they did end up editing out intimacy scenes in order to secure a release in the United Arab Emirates.
#3: “Der Fuehrer's Face” (1943)
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Nothing sells war quite like a talking duck. Or, at least, that was what Disney hoped. Donald got in on the propaganda craze during the 40s to help sell war bonds, but the nightmarish portrayal of the Nazis eventually had some pushback In 2010, a Russian court banned it on the grounds it endorsed extremist behavior. While that censorship was overturned in 2016, finding the eight minute short anywhere hasn’t always been a piece of cake either. Disney kept the film in the vault for over sixty years, with its first true home video release not coming until 2004.
#2: “Lightyear” (2022)
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This film aspired to go to infinity and beyond, but didn’t quite make it everywhere. A scene that featured a same-sex kiss drew the ire of film board in much of the Arab world, including Bahrain, Egypt, Iraq, Jordan, Kuwait, Lebanon, Oman, Palestine, Qatar, Saudi Arabia, Syria and the United Arab Emirates. It also wasn’t released in Russia, Malaysia or Kazakhstan. It’s actually fortunate that the kiss made it into the film at all. Allegedly, the scene was cut a few months before release, but reinstated after pressure from employees prompted Disney to vocally oppose the Florida Parental Rights in Education Act, also known as the Don’t Say Gay Bill.
#1: “Christopher Robin” (2018)
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Winnie the Pooh is about as uncontrontroversial as you can get. But, this mature take on the character was barred from China for a reason completely out of the honey-loving bear’s control - the power of internet memes. All the way back in 2013, a picture that compared Chinese President Xi Jinping to Pooh circulated on the web. Being the internet, it didn’t take long at all for it to become a full-on phenomenon. The government didn’t take too kindly to the continued comparisons, and it led to “Christopher Robin” being denied a Visa to Chinese theaters.
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