Top 23 Banned Movies of Each Year (2000 - 2022)
2000: “Battle Royale”
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It may be no surprise that this Japanese film about school kids fighting to the death was controversial back in the 2000s. It was given an R15+ rating and even national politicians weighed in with criticism. A North American release proved even more problematic. The year before the movie’s release, the tragic events unfolded at Columbine High School. Test audiences were repelled by the movie’s graphic violence. Distributor Toei Company was told that they’d face serious legal trouble if they released the film in the US, so besides festival screenings, it wasn’t shown in the country until 2011. The film was also banned in Germany in 2013, although this was later overturned.
2001: “Zoolander”
Even all these years later, we’re still trying to perfect our Blue Steel with limited success. Any tips would be appreciated. It’s easy to forget that the main plot in this quirky male model-centric film involves an attempt to assassinate the Prime Minister of Malaysia. Unsurprisingly, Malaysia wasn’t too keen on the film. In fact, Malaysia’s censorship board blocked the film's release and called it “definitely unsuitable”. Neighboring Singapore also prohibited the movie. In the rest of Asia, references to Malaysia were changed to the subregion ‘Micronesia’.
2002: “Harry Potter and the Chamber of Secrets”
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The Harry Potter series has faced considerable backlash from religious groups, who accuse it of promoting witchcraft. In the US, there have been calls from Christian groups to ban the books from schools. There have also been outright bans in several Muslim-majority countries. The United Arab Emirates banned the books from private schools in 2002. That same year, Saudi Arabia reportedly pulled the books from shelves, and banned the films too, for alleged Satanic themes, violence, and being ‘anti-family’. This prohibition wasn’t lifted until 2018. Other nations that barred the franchise include the Philippines and Malaysia.
2003: “The Matrix Reloaded”
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The Matrix franchise tackles a number of philosophical themes, including the nature of reality and of free will. This is part of what drew audiences in, but it also caused consternation in some parts. In Egypt, the first film was released, but criticized for allegedly promoting Zionism. The sequel was banned outright, with Egypt’s censorship board alleging that “The Matrix Reloaded” was violent and that its religious themes could cause “crises”. In the movie, Neo meets the creator of the Matrix, the Architect, who has godlike powers, but is also an emotionless artificial intelligence.
2004: “Shrek 2”
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Singer David D'Or is a national treasure in Israel. Known for his high-octave singing voice, he even represented his nation at the 2004 “Eurovision.” That same year however, “Shrek 2” was released, and the Hebrew dub included a joke implying that D’Or owed his high singing voice to a lack of … well, we’re going to leave this one for you to figure out. D’Or brought his case to court in Israel and won; the “Shrek” sequel was pulled from 20 cinemas in the country, until a re-dub could replace the D’Or diss.
2005: “Land of the Dead”
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The fact that a zombie film from the legendary George A. Romero was banned might not shock you. After all, these sorts of movies tend to have graphic content. However, the reasoning behind this ban isn’t what you might expect. Ukraine’s Culture Ministry prohibited “Land of the Dead” as it could potentially bring up memories of the Holodomor famine that occurred from 1932 to 1933. The famine came on the heels of Soviet industrialisation and collectivization; it’s seen within Ukraine as a genocidal attempt to prevent Ukrainian independence. The famine was so severe, people reportedly resorted to cannibalism. The Culture Ministry reasoned that it was not something survivors would want to see on screen.
2006: “The Da Vinci Code”
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2006’s “Borat” was banned throughout the Arab world. But “The Da Vinci Code” faced bans from all around the globe. Admittedly, a film that’s about a Vatican conspiracy and the descendants of Jesus Christ was always going to ruffle some feathers. When “The Da Vinci Code” was released, it sparked protests around the world, including the US, India, China, and the Philippines. Many countries outright banned it, including Egypt, Lebanon, Syria, Iran, and Jordan in the Middle East. In Asia, it was banned in Pakistan, some states in India, and China, after an initial theatrical run. In the Faroe Islands, the biggest cinema chain Havnar Bio, took the matter into their own hands by banning the film too.
2007: “The Simpsons Movie”
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With their yellow skin and four fingered hands, the Simpsons are actually quite uncanny! However, it wasn’t this lack of realism that got their 2007 movie in trouble in Myanmar. Rather, it was the fact that the ruling military junta didn’t like the use of yellow and red in the animation. They associated the colors with the flag of the National League for Democracy, a political party whose activities they’d prohibited. The NLD actually went on to rule the country from 2011 until a military coup in 2021, although their rule was not without serious controversy.
2008: “Rambo”
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We return to Myanmar again for this entry. In 2008, the authorities turned their attention to “Rambo.” Set in Myanmar, the movie doesn’t show their military forces in the best light. Instead, they’re violent, oppressive, and cruel. Rambo goes on a graphic rampage to rescue Christian missionaries from the sadistic soldiers. After banning the cinematic release, the Myanmar government cracked down on pirate DVD vendors. If they sold “Rambo,” they could face up to seven years in prison. Despite this, bootleg versions are available, and some of the one liners have been adopted as rallying cries by rebel groups.
2009: “Avatar”
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At the time of its release, James Cameron’s sci-fi epic was the highest-grossing film in history. But it wasn’t welcome everywhere. Shortly after its release in China, the government pulled the film from 2-D cinemas, allowing it to screen only in 3-D. And no, it wasn’t to provide viewers with maximum immersion in Pandora! It’s speculated that the move was to get more people to go and watch “Confucius”, a movie about the titular Chinese philosopher produced and distributed by the state-owned China Film Group Corporation. It’s also been claimed that the movie’s plot, which involves outsiders forcing the Na’vi from their homes, too closely paralleled the plights of Chinese residents facing eviction from property developers.
2010: “A Serbian Film”
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Sometimes, the reasons a movie is banned are complex. Not so with “A Serbian Film”, which is packed with disturbing and upsetting scenes. The movie was screened at a festival in Brazil, before being banned, although this decision was overturned in 2012. Australia and New Zealand banned it outright, while South Korea required heavy edits. A court banned the film in Spain, but it was shown nonetheless at an adults-only screening at a film festival, leading to charges against the festival’s director, although these were eventually dropped.
2011: “The Human Centipede 2 (Full Sequence)”
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Here’s another film that faced unsurprising restrictions around the world, given the level of graphic violence involved. The British Board of Film Classification initially refused to classify “The Human Centipede 2 (Full Sequence)” at all. However, they later made concessions, giving an 18 certificate to an edit that had undergone 32 cuts. In Australia, the film also had to undergo mandatory edits before receiving classification. But in neighboring New Zealand, the DVD was straight up banned.
2012: “The Hunger Games”
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Like “Battle Royale,” “The Hunger Games” also involves teens forced to fight each other to the death. As such, it didn’t go down well with everyone. In the UK, blood had to be edited out for the film to achieve a rating of 12A. The rating means that it’s considered suitable for anyone 12 and up, or for younger children when accompanied by an adult. In Vietnam however, the film was volunteered as tribute for indefinite delay, and later banned outright, due to the violence depicted.
2013: “The Wolf of Wall Street”
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Martin Scorsese’s film broke the Guinness World Record for its instances of swearing. And this contributed to bans and edits in some countries. Due to its sex scenes, drug use, and profanities, it was banned in Kenya, as well as Malaysia, Nepal, and Zimbabwe. The Kenya Film Classification Board even announced on Facebook that violators of their ban would be prosecuted. In India, Lebanon, and Singapore, certain shots and scenes had to be edited out, particularly those of a sexual nature.
2014: “The Interview”
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Obviously, North Korea was never going to show a film about assassinating its leader within its borders. However, North Korean authorities also attempted to have the flick pulled abroad, writing to then-US President Barack Obama, and threatening action against the United States. Sony re-edited the film, but had their systems hacked by a North Korean cybercrime group. Due to threats of terrorism, the film only received a limited theatrical release. Some North Korean defectors in South Korea planned to drop DVDs in North Korea via balloons, but the plan was scuttled when North Korean authorities called it a “declaration of war”. The film was also prohibited in Russia, after lobbying by North Korean diplomats.
2015: “Fifty Shades of Grey”
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E. L. James’ erotic romance novel may have started out as “Twilight” fan-fiction, but proved enormously popular in its own right. Translating the ‘erotic’ element to the screen, however, was always going to present problems when it came to censors. The film board in Malaysia gave it a ban, describing it as "unnatural" and "sadistic". It was also banned in Cambodia, Indonesia, Papua New Guinea, India, the United Arab Emirates, and Kenya. In Nigeria, the film made it a week before it was pulled from cinemas. It was allowed in Vietnam, but with all sex scenes cut out. Some of these film boards took issue not just with the sexual nature of certain scenes, but also with the perceived violence, which was interpreted as abuse.
2016: “Deadpool”
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If you’ve ever read a “Deadpool” comic, you know about Wade Wilson's love of lewdness and violence. When a film on the Marvel character was announced, some fans worried it wouldn’t be faithful to the source material. They were actually relieved when it received an R-rating! It wasn’t so fortunate in some countries though. China-flat out denied “Deadpool” a release. It wasn’t until 2018 that it was shown at a film festival without edits. The film was also not screened in Uzbekistan, where cinema owners agreed not to show it due to the age restrictions and violations of local ethical norms.
2017: “Wonder Woman”
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Sometimes, even movies are caught in the middle of regional conflicts. Due to star Gal Gadot’s mandatory military service in the Israel Defense Forces, Lebanon, Qatar, and Tunisia banned the 2017 epic “Wonder Woman”. Her comments supporting Israel during the 2014 Israel–Gaza conflict also came into play. The bans were part of the ongoing Arab League boycott of Israel. Gadot’s other films like “Death on the Nile” and “Justice League” have also received bans in some Arab nations.
2018: “Christopher Robin”
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For this one, we have to go back to 2013, when China’s President Xi Jinping met with US President Barack Obama. A photo of this meeting gave rise to a meme comparing the duo to Winnie-the-Pooh and Tigger. From there, whenever Xi met with world leaders or appeared in public, someone on the internet would whip out the comparison to the honey-obsessed bear. Well, Xi apparently was not fond of the memes. Chinese authorities began scrubbing not only the memes, but also Winnie the Pooh in general from the internet, and even video games! This censorship seems to have included a ban on the 2018 film “Christopher Robin”.
2019: “Jojo Rabbit”
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Are there subjects that comedy is off-limits to? Taika Waititi’s “Jojo Rabbit” raised this question with its comical depiction of Nazi leader Adolf Hitler. Or at least, an imaginary version of him. Not long after “Jojo Rabbit” had its international premiere, Twentieth Century Fox announced that they wouldn’t be releasing the movie in Russia. According to reports, no reason was provided by the studio for why the Oscar-winning flick was blocked. However, it could have something to do with the Soviet Union having suffered the biggest loss of life in World War II, with over 26 million people. As such, they might not have been comfortable viewing a dark comedy involving the person responsible.
2020: “Onward”
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Same-sex relationships continue to be illegal in some countries, with some laws a legacy of colonial rule, and others a result of religious sensibilities. The computer animated fantasy film “Onward” features a very brief mention of a same-sex relationship, when Police Officer Specter, a female cyclops, references her girlfriend. This was enough for several nations to prohibit release. The film was banned in Qatar, Kuwait, Saudi Arabia, and Oman. Some countries screened edited versions instead. In Russia for example, “girlfriend” was changed to “partner” in line with the country’s ‘gay propaganda law’, which criminalizes positive portrayals of LGBT relationships.
2021: “Eternals”
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Director Chloé Zhao’s MCU movie wasn’t released in China, reportedly due to comments made by Zhao back in 2013. It was also banned in several Middle Eastern countries, for various reasons. First and foremost was the same-sex relationship between Phastos and his husband Ben; Marvel stood their ground, refusing to edit it out. As a result, the film was banned in Saudi Arabia, Kuwait, Qatar, Bahrain and Oman. Another factor in some countries may have been the depiction of gods, as potentially blasphemous. Certain countries, like Indonesia, Egypt, Lebanon, Jordan, and the United Arab Emirates, asked Marvel to edit out all love scenes, which Marvel obliged.
2022: “Lightyear”
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A scene showing a same-sex kiss in “Lightyear” was actually cut from the film before release, but restored following an internal uproar. Employees at Pixar had accused Disney executives of censoring LGBTQ content. At the same time, Disney CEO Bob Chapek was facing backlash over statements about Florida’s "Don't Say Gay law", which led him to apologize and speak out against the bill. When film boards in various countries requested that the scene be cut, the House of Mouse refused. It was banned throughout much of the Muslim world and in China.
