After more than a month of unexplained delays, the United Arab Emirates (UAE) has granted approval for the release of the "Barbie" movie. The reason for the initial screening delay in the
UAE, as well as in other Arab nations, was not provided by officials.
The UAE Media Council made the announcement late Thursday, stating that the movie had now completed all necessary procedures to meet media content standards and UAE age classification requirements.
One of the potential reasons for the delay could be the movie's inclusion of a transgender actress portraying Barbie, and its messaging on LGBTQ+ issues. In Arab countries with Muslim majorities, homosexuality and transgender identity are often considered to be in opposition to Islamic religious beliefs.
The "Barbie" movie stars Margot Robbie as Barbie and Ryan Gosling as Ken, along with other actors portraying various Barbie and Ken characters. Hari Nef, a transgender actress from Philadelphia, plays one of the Barbies in the film.
While Warner Bros. Entertainment Inc. declined to comment on the delay, Majid Al Futtaim, the distributor of Warner Bros. movies in the Middle East, could not be reached for a statement.
This delay in the release of the "Barbie" movie echoes a similar incident last year when the UAE and other Arab countries initially postponed and then banned the release of "Spider-Man: Across the Spider-Verse" due to a transgender reference and the studio's refusal to censor it. Photo by RomitaGirl67, Wikimedia commons.
