'Doctor Strange' sequel won't be screened in Brunei

Benedict Cumberbatch, who plays the titular superhero said it was 'disappointing; that the scene had caused a backlash. Photo: Handout

Brunei is the latest country to cancel the screening of Marvel's new superhero flick Doctor Strange In The Multiverse Of Madness.

Cinema operator One Cineplex Brunei broke the news on its social media accounts on May 1.

"It is with a heavy heart that we must bring you this news. Doctor Strange In The Multiverse Of Madness will not be showing in Brunei.

"Words cannot express how we feel, we know how excited everyone was to this movie. We apologise for the disappointment and not being able to deliver," it wrote.

No reason was given for the cancellation.

On April 22, The Hollywood Reporter reported that the Doctor Strange sequel had been banned in Saudi Arabia.

Several days later, Metro UK reported that Kuwait, Qatar and Egypt had also decided not to release the Benedict Cumberbatch film.

According to Reuters, an official in Saudi Arabia told The Guardian newspaper that Disney was asked to remove a brief clip that makes "LGBTQ references". However, Disney declined to cut the scene.

Cumberbatch, who plays the titular superhero, told Reuters it was "disappointing" that the scene had caused a backlash.

The British actor said: "It's just mind-boggling that we're still talking about it, but here we are and I hope somehow fans of the film in Saudi Arabia of every sexuality are able to see it at some point somehow."

Meanwhile, the movie is causing a different kind of problem in China. In one scene, a newspaper kiosk bears the Chinese characters for The Epoch Times, a media company which opposes the Chinese Communist Party.

Doctor Strange In The Multiverse Of Madness has been submitted to the Chinese authorities for review but has yet to be granted a release date.

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