Dharamshala, 14th April: For the Chinese edition of Fantastic Beasts: The Secrets of Dumbledore, Warner Bros. removed references to a gay connection. As per Warner Bros. China has asked them to remove the gay reference. China is known for its strict censorship, and there have been numerous instances where scenes and speech from TV shows, movies, and other media have been blocked. This isn’t the first time China has done something similar.
Warner Bros. has always stated that they embrace the LGBT community, yet this support appears to be merely superficial. Warner Bros. has bowed its knees to China for the money in response to a request from China to remove the LGBT reference. The film premiered in China on April 8 and immediately became a box office success, grossing $9.7 million in its first three days.
The six seconds of speech, which alluded to the male characters Albus Dumbledore and Gellert Grindelwald’s sexual past, were cut from the film’s 142-minute duration. At China’s request, the words “because I was in love with you” and “the summer Gellert and I fell in love” were removed.
Warner Bros. explained that they wanted audiences everywhere in the world to see and enjoy this film, and it’s important to them that Chinese audiences have the opportunity to experience it as well, even with these ‘minor’ edits.
At a 2007 fan gathering for “Harry Potter and the Deathly Hallows,” author J.K. Rowling disclosed that Dumbledore is gay. The character’s sexual orientation was never mentioned in prior “Fantastic Beast” films, but it is disclosed for the first time in the most recent installment.
China Censors ‘Friends’ Reunion Special’
Last year, In China, viewers were treated to a censored version of HBO Max’s hour-long reunion of the cast of the 1990s sitcom, which omitted guest appearances from Justin Bieber, Lady Gaga, and K-pop supergroup BTS, as well as references to the LGBTQ community and urine. For various past political situations, Gaga, Bieber, and BTS have all been banned in China.
For Gaga the controversial incident was meeting with the Dalai Lama in 2016, an act that Chinese authorities considered to support Tibetan separatism, leading to her being banned from touring in China.
Meanwhile, Bieber has been barred from performing due to “bad behavior.”
After the boy band’s frontman made statements regarding the Korean War that sparked outrage on Chinese social media, BTS became controversial in the country.
Image credit: opentapes.org
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