Kuwait City: Kuwait has banned ‘Barbie’ and ‘Talk to Me’ films to protect ‘public ethics and social traditions’, the state news agency said early on Thursday.
The decision stemmed from keenness on protection of public ethics and social traditions, Undersecretary of the Ministry for Press and Publication Lafy Al Subeie said.
"The Committee noted that both movies promulgate ideas and beliefs that are alien to the Kuwaiti society and public order," Al Subeie, also head of the Committee, disclosed.
"While deciding on any foreign movie, the committee usually orders censoring of the scenes that run counter to public ethics. But a film carries alien concepts, message or unacceptable behaviour, the committee decides to bars the stuff in question as a whole," he explained, adding that this rule applies to all foreign cinema production.
The Gulf country followed in the footsteps of Lebanon, which on Wednesday also moved to ban the film 'Barbie' from being screened in the country. It earlier faced a ban from Vietnam.
'Barbie', which stars Margot Robbie and Ryan Gosling in the lead roles, hit the theatres on July 21. It faced a box office clash with Christopher Nolan's 'Oppenheimer'.
Despite mixed reviews, the film emerged as one of the highest-grossing films of 2023 so far.
