Vietnam has banned the release in its theaters of the movie “Barbie” since the production shows a map that attributes China a disputed maritime zone, state media reported Monday.
Mattel’s fantasy doll starring Margot Robbie and Ryan Gosling was set to open on July 21 in Vietnam.
But the production was banned because there are scenes that show on a map the so-called “line of nine points” representing China’s maritime claims being rejected by Vietnam.
“The National Council of Cinematographic Evaluation and Classification saw the film and made the decision to ban screening in vietnam due to the violation of the ‘9-point line,'” Vi Kien Thanh, director of the Vietnam Film Department, told the Dan Tri news portal.
This is not the first time that this discrepancy causes film ban in Vietnam, a communist country that uses censorship.