Philippine censors have allowed the Barbie film to be shown in the country’s cinemas, with the condition that its Hollywood distributor blurs the “nine-dash line”.
The much-anticipated film about the famous doll is due to open in the Philippines on July 19 – two days ahead of the UK release on July 21.
The Philippine government’s movie and television review and classification board reviewed the film twice and asked foreign affairs officials and legal experts, before concluding the film could be screened.
The censorship board said: “Instead, the map portrayed the route of the make-believe journey of Barbie from Barbie Land to the ’real world’, as an integral part of the story.”
“Rest assured that the board has exhausted all possible resources in arriving at this decision as we have not hesitated in the past to sanction filmmakers/ producers/distributors for exhibiting the fictitious ’nine-dash line’ in their materials.”
Previously, Warner Bros says the image of a map which caused the upcoming Barbie movie to be banned in Vietnam was “not intended to make any type of statement”.
The film, starring Margot Robbie and Ryan Gosling, reportedly contains a scene depicting a map showing what appeared to be the “nine-dash line”.
The line is a representation of China’s territorial claims in the disputed South China Sea - which Vietnam says violates its sovereignty.
According to local Vietnamese outlets, it is deemed an “illegal image” – prompting the national ban.
Vi Kien Thanh, director general of the Vietnam Cinema Department under the Ministry of Culture, Sports, and Tourism, reportedly announced the ban on Monday.
In a statement shared with US outlet Variety, Warner Bros said the “doodles” shown on screen were intended to depict “Barbie’s make-believe journey from Barbie Land”.
The doodles depict Barbie’s make-believe journey from Barbie Land to the ‘real world.’ It was not intended to make any type of statement.
“The map in Barbie Land is a child-like crayon drawing,” a spokesperson for the Warner Bros Film Group told Variety.
“The doodles depict Barbie’s make-believe journey from Barbie Land to the ‘real world’. It was not intended to make any type of statement.”
Barbie is due for release in the UK on July 21, the same day as Christopher Nolan’s historical epic Oppenheimer.
What is the nine-dash line?
The nine-dash line, often known as the 'cow's tongue', is a hypothetical U-shaped line that represents China's territorial claims in the South China Sea and is typically depicted on maps with nine dashes.
China has claimed sovereignty over the delineated area since the late 1940s, although Vietnam, the Philippines, Taiwan, Malaysia, and Brunei all contend that this claim infringes on their sovereignty.
Several official and unofficial Chinese maps show the nine-dash line encircling the Spratly Islands as it travels from near Vietnam's coast, deep into the South China Sea near Malaysia, and back up and around the Philippines.
China has never said precisely what the nine-dash line represents, leaving it open to interpretation.
Beyond presumptions of sovereignty, neither diplomats nor maritime solicitors have received the coordinates for any islands or baselines as required by international law.
