Malaysia says Disney refused to cut gay scenes in Lightyear

‘Those people are idiots,’ says Chris Evans, who voices the titular space ranger in the animated film

Malaysia's film censors on Friday (17 December) said that Disney decided against releasing Lightyear in the country after refusing to cut scenes “promoting the LGBT lifestyle”.

The inclusion of a kiss between two female characters reportedly prompted as many as 14 countries to ban the Disney-Pixar film. These include UAE, Saudi Arabia, Lebanon, Indonesia, Kuwait, and Egypt, in addition to Malaysia.

On Friday, the country’s Film Censorship Board said it approved the movie with parental guidance for those under 13 on the condition of modifications.

Scenes and dialogues that it “found to contain elements promoting the LGBT lifestyle which violate key aspects of the Guidelines on the Film Censorship” were ordered to "be cut and muted,” the board reportedly said in a statement.

However, the film’s distributors decided to cancel the screening instead, the board continued, adding that it would not compromise on any LGBTQ scenes. The board did not specify in its statement which scenes violated censorship guidelines.

Lightyear includes a female character, Alicia Hawthorne, voiced by Uzo Aduba briefly kissing her female partner in one scene in the $200m film.

Responding to criticism over the same-sex kiss, Chris Evans – who voices the character of titular legendary space ranger Buzz Lightyear – told Reuters: “The real truth is, those people are idiots. Every time there’s been social advancement, as we wake up, the American story, the human story is one of constant social awakening and growth and that’s what makes us good.”

Pixar had earlier restored the same-sex kiss in Lightyear in March, after staff released an open letter criticising Disney’s response to Florida’s “Don’t Say Gay” bill.

Authorities across much of the Muslim world have barred Lightyear from being played at cinemas because it includes a brief kiss between a lesbian couple.

Many Muslims consider gays and lesbians to be sinful and many Muslim-majority nations criminalise same-sex relationships.

Additional reporting by AFP.