Fresh from having its release blocked in Vietnam because of a scene in the film containing a map of the world with the controversial “nine-dash line” drawn on it, Barbie might be finding itself banned in yet another country — this time, the Philippines.
As per Variety, authorities in the Philippines are deliberating following their Vietnamese counterparts and banning the film from cinemas. Local reports have quoted a senator in the Philippines as saying the film “denigrates Philippine sovereignty.”
The Movie and Television Review and Classification Board (MTRCB) is the organization responsible for classifying and, potentially, banning films in the country, and yesterday it published a press release on its website stating that it was reviewing the film that day (July 4, 2023):
“We confirm that the Board has reviewed the film ‘Barbie’ today, 04 July 2023. At this time, the assigned Committee on First Review is deliberating on the request of Warner Brothers F.E. Inc. for a Permit to Exhibit. Once available, a copy of the Permit to Exhibit or the Committee’s decision will be uploaded to the Agency’s official website.”
The agency definitely has teeth, as in recent years it has blocked other films for similar reasons, like last year’s action-adventure epic Uncharted, starring Tom Holland.
The “nine-dash line” is a controversial map marking that shows what the People’s Republic of China considers to be its territory in the South China Sea. Aside from Vietnam and the Philippines, other countries in the region that have expressed concern with the drawing of the lines include Taiwan, Brunei, and Malaysia, the latter of which has previously taken its claim against China to the U.N.
Some believe the use of the “nine-dash line” in a scene in Barbie is to placate Chinese censors, which are considered to be overly sensitive to anything considered to be anti-Sino. China is a huge market for films, so the need to tap it might be seen as vital by some of the big bosses at Warner Bros. It is unknown if director Greta Gerwig had much to do with the decision, although that hasn’t stopped a few commenters joking about it.
As some have pointed out on Twitter, the offended nations are also massive cash cows for studios.
No matter where you fall on the issue, it seems the main people who will suffer are movie watchers in the affected nations as they miss out on seeing this much-anticipated film in theaters.