Censor boards across Middle East banned the film due to inclusion of a transgender character
Middle Eastern nations including Saudi Arabia, the United Arab Emirates, Qatar, Bahrain, Oman, and Kuwait have banned Disney’s latest adaptation of the West Side Story, directed by Steven Spielberg.
Variety reports thatthe ban is a result of Disney refusing to comply with censors in Qatar and Oman, and the film not being given a release certificate in SA and Kuwait due to a character being transgender in the film.
Censor boards across the Middle Eastern region refused to play the film with the character Anybodys, a transgender role played by non-binary actor Iris Menas.
The move doesn’t come as a shock as content with references to LGBTQ spectrum are regularly banned, the most recent being Marvel’s Eternals, which was banned because of an openly same-sex couple in the film.
West Side Story otherwise releases on Friday, November 10, and stars Rachel Zegler, Ansel Elgort, Ariaan DeBose, David Alvarez, Mika Faist, and Rita Moreno among others.