Disney refuses to cut ‘Doctor Strange 2’ LGBTQ scene in Saudi Arabia

Disney has refused Saudi Arabia’s demands to cut an LGBTQ reference from the Marvel film Doctor Strange in the Multiverse of Madness.

Saudi Arabia has denied the reports that Marvel’s upcoming film has been banned in the country. An official from the Middle-Eastern nation has recently clarified that they are still trying to negotiate with the film’s production house.

However, Disney and Marvel have declined to cut the sequence from the upcoming film.

According to The Guardian the 12-seconds featuring America Chavez, a lesbian character, mentioning her “two moms” has been flagged to be taken out.

“It’s just her talking about her moms because she has two moms, and being in the Middle East, it’s very tough to pass something like this,” Nawaf Alsabhan, general supervisor of cinema classification in Saudi Arabia, said to Agence France-Presse.

“We sent it to the distributor, and the distributor sent it to Disney, and Disney has told us they are not willing,” he added.

Alsabhan further stated that, “There’s no reason to ban the film. It’s a simple edit – so far they have refused. But we haven’t closed the door. We’re still trying.”

Doctor Strange in the Multiverse of Madness is slated to release on May 6 worldwide.