‘Barbie’ film banned in Vietnam for featuring disputed map scene

‘Barbie’ film has been banned in Vietnam for featuring a disputed map scene!

Greta Gerwig’s “Barbie.” starring Margot Robbie and Ryan Gosling, one of the most anticipated films of the summer, was set to be released in Vietnam on July 21.

The film features a scene that depicts a map with the “nine-dash line,” a representation of China’s territorial claims in the South China Sea, which Vietnam says violates its sovereignty.

Vi Kien Thanh, director general of the Vietnam Cinema Department under the Ministry of Culture, Sports, and Tourism, in a statement on Monday, said that the ban has been imposed on the Warner Bros. film by the National Film Evaluation Council.

“We do not grant a license for the American movie ‘Barbie’ to release in Vietnam because it contains the offending image of the nine-dash line,” said the state-run Tuoi Tre newspaper, also citing Vi Kien Thanh.

Similar depictions of the “nine-dash line” have previously caused problems for multiple films and TV series in Vietnam.

DreamWorks’ animated film “Abominable” in 2019, and Sony’s “Unchartered” were banned for the same reason.

As reported, Exhibitor CGV was fined for showing “Abominable,” and staff at the Vietnam Cinema Department were disciplined for not immediately spotting the offending images.

Abominable was pulled off from the cinemas after just over a week’s period of screening.

Furthermore, In 2020, the series “Put Your Head On My Shoulder” and “Madam Secretary” were told to delete scenes featuring the disputed map.

The latest case was, in 2021, Netflix was ordered to remove the Australian spy drama “Pine Gap” from the Vietnamese market.