He Barbie Juggernaut is finally ready to hit the Gulf.
the hollywood reporter can confirm that the film, which has already surpassed $1 billion at the global box office, will open in Saudi Arabia and the United Arab Emirates on Thursday, ending weeks of speculation that Greta Gerwig’s record-breaking blockbuster would join to a growing list. of movies to ban.
THR understands that the film was originally meant to be released throughout the region in line with its worldwide release on July 21. However, when local censors suggested a series of small edits, this date was pushed back to August 31. While the move destroyed chances of Gulf theaters experiencing the so-called “Barbenheimer” phenomenon (oppenheimer made the most of it and topped the box office in its first week), presumably gave both the censors and Barbie studio Warner Bros. enough time to resolve any issues. It seems that a solution with an early release date has now been found, though THR has been unable to confirm if any cuts have been made to the film to ensure this.
Release is currently limited to the two largest box offices in the Gulf; no news about Barbie opening in other territories of the Gulf. In general, most follow whatever decision is made in Saudi Arabia, but Kuwait, often considered the strictest when it comes to censorship, especially LGBTQ references, recently took the unprecedented step of banning the hit horror movie. tell menot because of any aspect of the movie itself, but because of the fact that its star Zoe Terakes identifies as non-binary and trans masculine. tell me has launched in all other Gulf markets without cuts.
