Could 'Eternals' move the needle the Miast by puttg a gay character on screen?

Contents:

• ETERNALS PULLED SDI ARABIA AND OTHER ARAB COUNTRI DUE TO GAY ROMANCE [UPDATE: ANGELA JOLIE RPONDS]
• ‘ETERNALS’ YANKED FROM RELEASE SDI ARABIA AND OTHER ARAB COUNTRI, RTRICTED SGAPORE DUE TO GAY SUPERHERO
• GAY KISS 'ETERNALS' WAS CENSORED SOME MIDDLE EASTERN COUNTRI
• COULD 'ETERNALS' MOVE THE NEEDLE THE MIAST BY PUTTG A GAY CHARACTER ON SCREEN?

ETERNALS PULLED SDI ARABIA AND OTHER ARAB COUNTRI DUE TO GAY ROMANCE [UPDATE: ANGELA JOLIE RPONDS]

Meet Eternals star Haaz Sleiman, the ‘gay, Mlim, Arab-Amerin’ actor makg Marvel and LGBT history wh his role as superhero Phastos’ hband. Actg alongsi Angela Jolie and Salma Hayek, The Ltle Ameri star and Brian Tyree Henry, who plays Phastos the film, will portray MCU’s first openly gay uple.

Origal Story: Marvel’s Eternals featur a lot of firsts, cludg the MCU’s first (PG-13) sex scene and first gay superhero. In the se of several Arab natns, movi wh sex, homosexualy, and possible relig issu, are cut to meet censorship l.

Eternals featur Phastos, the first gay superhero an MCU film. Marvel’s “Eternals, ” which featur the first MCU gay superhero, has been banned Sdi Arabia and several other Arab untri ahead of s planned Nov.

‘ETERNALS’ YANKED FROM RELEASE SDI ARABIA AND OTHER ARAB COUNTRI, RTRICTED SGAPORE DUE TO GAY SUPERHERO

In the Arab world, movi ncerng or ntag sex, homosexualy and relig issu are routely cut to ply wh censorship l. Zhao has said that gay superhero Phastos (played by Brian Tyree Henry), who is married wh a child the movie, was already an tegral part of Marvel Studs’ nceptn of the character when she first began discsg the film wh the stud. “The film ntas homosexual referenc.

The EternalsMarvel Stud’s first gay kiss has been censored some Middle Eastern untri, but Eternals is still breakg new ground when to queer reprentatn the some untri the regn, cludg Sdi Arabia, Kuwa, Qatar, Bahra, and Oman are flat out clg to release the movie due to s queer ntent, other untri are showg a cut of the latt, queer-clive Marvel flick that simply eds out a scene where Phastos kiss his hband, leavg other scen he has wh his hband and same-sex kiss was eded out of the film the Uned Arab Emirat, Egypt, Lebanon, Iraq, Jordan, Ethpia, Palte, Syria, and Turkey. But wasn’t jt the gay kiss that was eded out, was any and all scen of physil timacy and kissg between characters (LGBTQ+ and straight), which is standard those untri.

GAY KISS 'ETERNALS' WAS CENSORED SOME MIDDLE EASTERN COUNTRI

Dpe removg the kiss, the versn of Eternals that screened the untri still shows Phastos (Brian Tyree Henry) to be happily married to a man, who also happens to be played by gay Mlim actor Haaz Sleiman. ”While her dream didn’t exactly e te, Middle Eastern dienc are still gettg to see a posive portrayal of a Black gay superhero and his Middle Eastern hband. LOS ANGELES - When "Eternals, " the first movie the Marvel Cematic Universe featurg a gay superhero, rolls out the Arab world on Thursday, the Disney-distributed blockbter will, unsurprisgly, skip releas Sdi Arabia, Kuwa, Qatar, Bahra and Oman, maly due to s LGBTQ the star-studd superhero pic will still screen for dienc the Uned Arab Emirat, Egypt, Lebanon, Iraq, Jordan, Ethpia, Palte, Syria and Turkey.

This, self, is somethg of a breakthrough for the regn: Excisg the same-sex kiss between gay superhero Phastos (played by Brian Tyree Henry) and his hband Ben (Haaz Sleiman), don't remove the fact that the "Eternals" versn beg screened movie theaters a large swathe of the Middle East will still feature the two men, who are married wh a, which has cled to ment, is unrstood to have been unwillg to acmodate requts for different cuts ma by var censorship boards several Middle East natns — somethg they've been willg to do on past films. It don't mean they didn't chop anythg out of "Eternals" for the Middle East; 's jt that, this time, Disney was willg to make only one versn of "Eternals" that would be acceptable across the Arab world, acrdg to the "Eternals" cut that will play parts of the Middle East, all scen of timacy — both gay and straight — have been cut, which is standard for the markets. S., where he me out as gay 2017, has praised Disney for takg a harr stand agast Middle East censorship this time.

COULD 'ETERNALS' MOVE THE NEEDLE THE MIAST BY PUTTG A GAY CHARACTER ON SCREEN?

And earlier this year, Disney's "Cella" was not granted a release certifite Qatar sce the lol censorship board intified the Artie character as LGBTQ and wanted him removed om film, which stead played other Middle East gay, lbian and transgenr people face persecutn across most of the Arab world where same-sex relatns are agast the law. In Sdi Arabia, homosexualy n be punished by floggg or ath. "As for whether "Eternals" will move the needle, Hefzy add: "It's hard to speculate whether 's a trend that's gog to ntue terms of more openns to gay them" or whether is, stead, "jt a one-off.