Barbie is not set to open worldwide until July 21, but Greta Gerwig's comedic take on the iconic Mattel fashion doll is already emerging as one of the most controversial movies of the summer.
As we previously reported, Barbie has been banned in Vietnam due to one shot of a map showing the disputed "nine-dash line" – a U-shaped line used in Chinese maps to stake its claim on territory in the South China Sea.
The country's National Film Appraisal and Classification Board ultimately made the decision to ban the movie outright, with Vi Kien Thanh, head of the Vietnam Cinema Department, confirming to state media that Barbie would not screen in the region because of "the illegal image of the ‘cow’s tongue line’ in the film.”
A shot of the "offending" image did the rounds online shortly after, and, as you can see above, it really doesn't seem like something to get into too much of a tizzy about.
Now, Warner Bros. has released to address the situation.
“The map in Barbie Land is a child-like crayon drawing,” a spokesperson for the studio tells 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.”
The board didn't see it that way, however, and stand by their ruling.
Warner Bros. has also released a brief clip from the movie, with Barbie (Margot Robbie) going to see "Weird Barbie" (Kate McKinnon), which also contains a brief shot of the map.
From Oscar-nominated writer/director Greta Gerwig (Little Women, Lady Bird) comes Barbie, which also stars America Ferrera (End of Watch, the How to Train Your Dragon films), Kate McKinnon (Bombshell, Yesterday), Issa Rae (The Photograph, Insecure), Rhea Perlman (I’ll See You in My Dreams, Matilda), and Will Ferrell (the Anchorman films, Talladega Nights), and more.
Gerwig directs from a screenplay she penned alongside Oscar nominee Noah Baumbach (Marriage Story, The Squid and the Whale), based on the iconic fashion dolls by Mattel.
The film’s producers are Oscar nominee David Heyman (Marriage Story, Gravity), Robbie, Tom Ackerley and Robbie Brenner, with Gerwig, Baumbach, Ynon Kreiz, Richard Dickson, Michael Sharp, Josey McNamara, Courtenay Valenti, Toby Emmerich and Cate Adams serving as executive producers.