Disney and Marvel’s “Eternals,” which was originally scheduled to open in the Middle Eastern region on November 11th, will now not be opening at all in Saudi Arabia, Qatar, Kuwait, Bahrain and Oman.
Official reasons have not been provided by either the studio or the local territories, but reports in the trades suggest in at least several of the countries censors were seeking cuts not just of any scenes of intimacy but beyond that.
The Marvel film includes the studio’s first sex scene and its first same-sex kiss. The film also depicts gods and prophets which can be seen as blasphemous in some of these markets.
Disney opted not to make the edits and so distribution certificates were not issued in some of these countries, others have been blocked.
Elsewhere in the United Arab Emirates, Jordan, Lebanon and Egypt, the film will open but that version will remove all scenes of intimacy – be they heterosexual or homosexual. That is a normal practice for those markets.
Source: THR
