Saudi Arabia, Kuwait, and Qatar ban Marvel's Eternals: Know why

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• Nov 5, 2021 | moderator

New York: Marvel's latest blockbuster Eternals creates history for the superhero appearances. Unfortunately, audiences in Saudi Arabia, Kuwait, and Qatar won't see it in theaters. 

The latest Marvel movie has been drawn from release in the nations after being programmed to debut there on November 11. As per sources, the ban was likely due to a gay superhero who is in a same-sex relationship in the movie. 

Eternals produces a group of eternal beings, and a sequence in the film depicts one of them, Phastos. Phastos and his husband further share a kiss on screen, making this the first season the Marvel Cinematic Universe (MCU) has highlighted a gay kiss in any movie. 

The streaming series Loki earlier showed its principal character, presented by Tom Hiddleston, as bisexual through dialogue. Yet, the series hasn't drawn him into a same-sex relationship. 

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The local censors in the Gulf region asked for edits in the Eternals. However, Disney refused to do so. So when it comes to Kuwait and Qatar, the issue "may not only be the same-sex kiss, rather that overall these markets have historically had a difficulty with the depiction of gods and prophets, which they consider impious." 

Eternals filmmaker Chloe Zhao had lately stated that she does not want to cut scenes to entertain the censor boards. She said: "I don't remember all the details, still I do believe discussions were made. There's a great desire from Marvel and myself. We discussed concerning this not to modify any the part of the film."

Eternals additionally highlights the first sex scene in an MCU movie, which comprises a heterosexual couple. Eternals director Chloé Zhao previously stated a "big desire from Marvel and myself" not to censor the film for its release abroad, appending, "Fingers crossed." 

Producers use a budget of $200 million for Eternals. The film stars Angelina Jolie, Salma Hayek, Kit Harrington, Richard Madeen, Kumail Nanjiani, etc. Bollywood actor Harish Patel further makes a special appearance in the movie.