‘Barbie’ Banned in Vietnam for ‘Offending’ Map Image
thewrap.comReuters. The decision was based on 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. “We do not grant license for the American movie ‘Barbie’ to release in Vietnam because it contains the offending image of the nine-dash line,” Tuoi Tre newspaper reported, citing Vi Kien Thanh, head of the Department of Cinema, a government body in charge of licensing and censoring foreign films.
Warner Bros. Discovery didn’t immediately respond to TheWrap’s request for comment.The Margot Robbie/Ryan Gosling comic fantasy, which is due to open theatrically on July 21, is the latest Hollywood production to be banned in Vietnam.
Tom Holland and Mark Wahlberg’s “Uncharted” was likewise banned in the territory in early 2022, as was DreamWorks Animation’s “Abominable” in late 2019.
Vi Kien Thanh, director general of the Vietnam Cinema Department under the Ministry of Culture, Sports, and Tourism, said on Monday that the ban was decided by the National Film Evaluation Council.
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