“Beauty and the Beast” met with controversy recently when its director Bill Condon revealed that the movie contained a “nice exclusive gay moment” involving one its characters.
Speaking to The Associated Press, LPF chairman Abdul Halim Abdul Hamid confirmed that the controversial homosexual scene had been axed as it was deemed inappropriate to Malaysian audiences, and the movie given a PG13 rating, requiring that children below 13 years of age be accompanied by a parent.
“We have approved it but there is a minor cut involving a gay moment. It is only one short scene but it is inappropriate because many children will be watching this movie,” Abdul Halim told AP.
He also said the film’s distributor The Walt Disney Co (Malaysia) Sdn Bhd had not appealed to the LPF about their decision to cut the gay scene.
However AP reported today that Walt Disney will postpone the movie’s screening, scheduled for this Thursday, and has not given a reason why.
The live-action remake of the Disney classic has been widely anticipated by Malaysian audiences, who expressed disappointment when first told that the movie may not make it to local cinemas due to a gay scene.
The movie stars Emma Watson of Harry Potter fame as Belle, Dan Stevens as the Beast and Luke Evans as Gaston.
The homosexual character of Le Fou, played by Josh Gad, however has proven to be the stumbling block in the fairy tale ending of Beauty and her Beast.