The Philippine Coast Guard and representatives of the fishing community have frequently complained about harassment by Chinese vessels. The Philippines and Vietnam are both on the frontlines of the dispute over the South China Sea, a resource rich and strategically important waterway and one of the busiest trading routes in the world. The DreamWorks’s animated film Abominable was also pulled from cinemas in both countries in 2019, as was the action movie Uncharted last year. In 2021 Australian spy drama Pine Gap was banned in Vietnam, while two episodes were removed in the Philippines. Vietnam and the Philippines have frequently banned films and TV dramas over their depictions of the South China Sea. On Thursday it was reported that Vietnam’s authorities would also inspect the website of K-pop group Blackpink’s tour operator, after it was alleged it featured a map that displayed the “nine-dash line”, which runs close to Vietnam’s coast and includes much of what Vietnam considers its continental shelf. “At the minimum, our cinemas should include an explicit disclaimer that the nine-dash line is a figment of China’s imagination.” “The movie Barbie is fiction, and so is the nine-dash line,” said senator Risa Hontiveros. The film is currently being considered by the Philippines’ Movie and Television Review and Classification Board.

Some senators in the Philippines have called for Barbie to be banned, or for a form of disclaimer to be added to counter the map. It was not intended to make any type of statement.”īarbie was due to be released in Vietnam on 21 July, according to local media, which reported that its screenings would no longer go ahead, and that posters advertising the film had been removed from movie distributors’ websites. “The doodles depict Barbie’s make-believe journey from Barbie Land to the real world.

“The map in Barbie Land is a whimsical, child-like crayon drawing,” the studio said. Warner Bros defended the map and suggested in a statement published by Reuters that it carried no significant meaning.

Warner bros movie world map