Saudi Arabia's request for Disney to remove LGBTQ scenes from Doctor Strange 2 rejected

We previously reported that "Doctor Strange 2" was banned in Saudi Arabia, Kuwait and other Middle Eastern countries because the film contains LGBTQ+, which is illegal in Middle Eastern countries.

Now, according to foreign media gamerant, Saudi Arabia only asked Disney to modify the content before the release of "Doctor Strange 2" and delete a 12-second scene because it mentioned LGBTQ+ characters.

Nawaf Alsabhan, Saudi Arabia's general supervisor of film classification, said in an interview with AFP that "Doctor Strange 2" was not banned in the country, "there is no reason to ban the film, it just needs a simple modification," he was referring to the scene where Miss America (a lesbian character) played by Xochitl Gomez talks about her two mothers. Due to cultural restrictions in the Middle East, LGBTQ+ is not allowed to appear, so Disney was asked to delete this 12-second scene.

Disney has refused to make any changes to Doctor Strange 2, saying it wants to maintain its integrity worldwide. The film was originally scheduled to be released in Saudi Arabia on May 5, but if Disney cannot meet the country's requirements, it cannot be released in theaters.

"Doctor Strange 2" will be released in North America on May 6, 2022.