3 Malaysia NGOs lodge police report over scenes in Beauty And The Beast

KUALA LUMPUR — A gay character portrayed in the movie Beauty And The Beast raised the ire of three non-governmental organisations (NGOs) in Malaysia, leading to police reports being filed against it.

According to Malaysia news agency Bernama, the complaints said that the character Le Fou, played by Josh Gad in the movie, “goes against the religious and cultural values of Malaysia”.

The police reports were lodged by the heads of Pertubuhan Martabat Jalinan Muhibbah (MJMM), Dewan Ekonomi dan Sosial Malaysia (DESMMA), and Ikatan Rakyat Insan Muslim Malaysia (IRIMM) after the movie was allowed to screen in cinemas without censoring the “gay scenes”.

Speaking to reporters after lodging the police report at a police headquarters in Kuala Lumpur, MJMM President Abdul Rani Kulup Abdullah said: “Screening the film does not benefit the youth and people of this country. It only has negative values and bad effects on society.”

Malaysia’s censors had previously considered cutting some scenes in the movie, but relented after Disney refused to budge.

In Hong Kong, an anti-gay group in Hong Kong also petitioned the Hong Kong film classification authority on March 15 to reclassify the movie rating after it was approved to be suitable for all ages.

There was a similar uproar in Singapore, with the National Council of Churches Singapore issuing advisories for its congregation over fears about Disney’s first openly gay character.

The gay scenes in the movie musical came to light after a revelation by its director Bill Condon in an interview with British magazine, Attitude.

The movie will hit cinemas in Malaysia on March 30 with a P13 rating, which requires children watching the movie to be accompanied by an adult.

Beauty And The Beast is currently in cinemas in Hong Kong and Singapore, and has so far raked in more than S$647 million in ticket sales worldwide, breaking box office records.