‘Eternals’ Yanked From Release in Saudi Arabia and Other Arab Countries Due to Gay Superhero

Alissa Simon Film CriticThe first fiction film to be set amongst the working-class Black Saudi community of Riyadh, this social issues drama, released by Netflix and chosen as the Kingdom’s international feature submission, is more fascinating for the cultural differences it reveals than any felicities of filmmaking. Taking place at the end of the 1990s, the rather ominously titled “The Tambour of Retribution,” is the second feature directed by Abdulaziz Alshelahi (“Zero Distance”).

Saudi journalist Jamal Kashoggi, who'd published articles in The Washington Post criticizing his nation's crown prince, Muhammad bin Salman, was murdered and dismembered in the Saudi consulate in 2018. He'd gone there to pick up documents he needed to marry his fiance, Hatice Cengiz.

Justin Bieber wishes his brother Jaxon Bieber a happy birthday in a sweet tribute.

published Saturday in the Washington Post, urging the pop star to “send a powerful message to the world that your name and talent will not be used to restore the reputation of a regime that kills its critics.”A U.S. intelligence report in February implicated Saudi Arabian Crown Prince Mohammed bin Salman in the 2018 murder of Khashoggi in the Saudi consulate in Istanbul, Turkey.

Justin Bieber has been urged to cancel his forthcoming concert in Saudi Arabia next month by the fiancée of murdered Washington Post journalist Jamal Khashoggi.The pop star is due to perform in the city of Jeddah on December 5 as part of the Formula One Saudi Arabian Grand Prix.But Hatice Cengiz has called on Bieber to cancel the show.In an open letter published in the Washington Post, Ms Cengiz wrote: “Do not sing for the murderers of my beloved Jamal.

An open letter in the Washington Post from the woman who was engaged to slain reporter Jamal Khashoggi is urging Justin Bieber not to play a Dec. 5 show in the kingdom.

Pop star Justin Bieber is facing growing calls to cancel his concert in Saudi Arabia next month as the fiancee of slain Saudi critic Jamal Khashoggi joined a chorus of voices on Sunday urging him not to perform at the kingdom’s Formula One race.

prince drew international gasps and cast a shadow over Prince Mohammed, whose reputation never fully recovered. Prince Mohammed has maintained he had no prior knowledge of the operation that killed Khashoggi.

Nick Vivarelli International CorrespondentBritish director director Rupert Wyatt (“Rise of the Planet of the Apes”) is shooting Saudi Arabia-set actioner “Desert Warrior” featuring a top notch international cast led by “Captain America” star Anthony Mackie and Aiysha Hart (“Mogul Mowgli,” “Colette”).MBC Studios, the production arm of prominent Middle East broadcaster MBC Group, has teamed up with U.S.

Nick Vivarelli International CorrespondentWhen “Eternals,” the first movie in the Marvel Cinematic Universe featuring a gay superhero, rolls out in the Arab world on Thursday, the Disney-distributed blockbuster will, unsurprisingly, skip releases in Saudi Arabia, Kuwait, Qatar, Bahrain and Oman, mainly due to its LGBTQ+ content.

Nick Vivarelli International CorrespondentThe Middle East premiere of British director Joe Wright’s dazzling romantic drama “Cyrano” will open the Red Sea Film Festival, which is Saudi Arabia’s first full-fledged film festival and market with international ambitions.The ambitious event, which is a key plank of the kingdom’s plans to diversify its oil-based economy and become a prominent Middle East moviemaking hub – following the 2017 removal of its religion-related ban on cinema – is set to

EXCLUSIVE: Here are your first look images of Jeremy Irons (House of Gucci) and Saw star Tobin Bell in recently-wrapped horror movie Cello, which we brought you news of last week.

The Red Sea International Film Festival has set the lineup for its inaugural edition which runs from December 6-15 in Jeddah, Saudi Arabia. The roster includes 138 titles from 67 countries and will open with MGM’s Joe Wright-directed musical romance Cyrano. The film previously played Telluride and Rome among others and releases domestically on December 31. Closing the Red Sea Fest is the world premiere of Egyptian director Amr Salama’s Bara El Manhag.

EXCLUSIVE: Few recent festival launches have garnered as much chatter as the Red Sea International Film Festival, Saudi Arabia’s first ever film festival.

Eternals has been banned in multiple countries over the film’s gay content, a decision star Angelina Jolie called “ignorant.”Jolie, who plays Thena in Chloé Zhao’s film, told news.com.au that she was “sad” for audiences in multiple Gulf nations, including Saudia Arabia, Kuwait, and Qatar, where the film has been banned from opening.According to Deadline, censors in the conservative countries allegedly lobbied Disney to remove multiple scenes from the Eternals, particularly those depicting a

Haaz Sleiman is speaking out after “Eternals” was banned from movie theatres in some Arab countries.

Weighing in. Amid the news that Saudi Arabia, Qatar, Kuwait, Bahrain and Oman have dismissed theatrical releases of Marvel’s Eternals over censorship complaints, star Angelina Jolie opened up about her thoughts on the “ignorant” decision.

Marvel’s Eternals will not hit cinemas in Saudi Arabia, Kuwait or Qatar due to a same-sex kiss scene.According to The Hollywood Reporter, Eternals has been pulled from release in those countries after Disney refused a number of edit requests by local censors.Sources claimed the requests revolved around the inclusion of a same-sex married couple, Phastos (Brian Tyree Henry) and Ben (Haaz Sleiman), who have a son and share a kiss in the film.

Some Marvel fans in the Middle East will be missing out on the franchise’s latest blockbuster.

Eternals will not be screening in certain territories.