Streaming site Mubi called the banning of Mubi Fest Istanbul 2024’s opening film Queer, just hours before it was due to start, “a direct restriction on art and freedom of expression”.
A film festival in Istanbul has been scrapped in protest at a reported ban on their opening film, Queer, starring Daniel Craig.
Streaming service Mubi say they decided to pull Mubi Fest Istanbul 2024 after local authorities said the movie could not be shown “for security reasons”.
Mubi say local authorities claimed the “provocative content” in Queer would “endanger public peace”.
In the historical drama, Bond star Craig plays a drug-addicted American living in 1950s Mexico.
Directed by Luca Guadagnino, it’s based on the 1985 semi-autobiographical novel by Beat Generation author William Burroughs and explores the colourful nightlife of Mexico City.
Mubi said Turkish authorities told them just hours before the four-day festival was due to begin that Queer had been banned by a decision of the Kadıkoy District Governorate of Istanbul.
In a statement provided to Sky News, Mubi said the decision said the film was prohibited on the grounds “that it contains provocative content that could endanger public peace, with the ban being imposed for security reasons”.