‘Beauty and the Beast’ to be shown uncut in Malaysia
KUALA LUMPUR: Disney’s hit movie “Beauty and the Beast”, under fi re from Malaysian conservatives for a “gay moment”, will be released in the country without any cuts, the entertainment giant said on Tuesday.
The fi lm “will be released in Malaysia on the 30th March, rated PG13 with no cuts”, a spokeswoman for Disney in Southeast Asia told AFP by email.
A movie chain, Golden Screen Cinemas, also tweeted that the movie would be shown uncut on that date in Malaysia.
A “PG 13” rating means parental guidance is advisable for children aged below 13.
Malaysian fi lm censors could not immediately be reached for comment.
The fi lm, featuring “Harry Potter” star Emma Watson, has raised hackles worldwide among religious groups angered by its depiction of Le Fou, the sycophantic sidekick to antagonist Gaston, as a gay man — making him Disney’s fi rstever openly gay character.
Malaysian authorities had demanded cuts but Disney refused to budge, choosing to instead to appeal the decision last week.
“The way he dances is... gay and the dialogue and the lyrics of the song are too. In the same scene he also lifts up his shirt and shows a love bite on his tummy,” Abdul Halim Abdul Hamid, head of Malaysia’s Film Censorship Board, told AFP last week.
But some members of parliament on Monday questioned the need to censor the fi lm, arguing that the debacle was giving Malaysia bad publicity.
Religious groups and Islamic scholars had previously called for the fi lm to be banned over concerns that it would promote “negative values” in the country.
The fi lm has also come under fi re from religious fi gures in neighbouring Singapore, while Russia slapped an adults- only rating on it last week following pressure from an ultraconservative lawmaker.
Singapore has allowed the movie to be shown uncut but with a parental guidance rating for “mild portrayals of violence”.
Despite the controversy, the movie shattered box office records in its opening weekend, taking a monster US$ 175.7 million in North America and US$ 357 million in total, according to industry data. — AFP