Movie about Prophet Muhammad’s Daughter pulled in UK after protests – The Hollywood Reporter
A film about the Prophet Muhammad’s daughter has been pulled from cinemas by one of the UK’s biggest chains following protests accusing the feature of blasphemy.
Cineworld, which also owns the Regal chain in the US, said it would cancel all upcoming screenings of the show. Goddess “Due to related incidents” and to “ensure the safety of our employees and customers.”
Protests broke out in front of cinemas in several UK cities after the film, by director Eli King and writer Sheikh Al-Habibi, began screening over the bank holiday weekend to celebrate Queen’s Celebration.
Tells the story of Fatima, daughter of the Prophet Muhammad who lived in the 7th century, Woman in Heaven also created a link between the Islamic State militant group and various historical figures in Islam. It opens with ISIS’s invasion of Iraq, featuring a graphic murder. With Islam forbidding direct depictions of religious figures, Fatima is seen as a figure without a face, covered by a black veil.
Protesters accuse the film of inaccurately and negatively depicting some of Islam’s most important figures. More than 120,000 people have signed a petition calling for it to be withdrawn from UK cinemas.
In an email to Cineworld, the local newspaper reported Bolton NewsThe chairman of the Bolton Mosque Council, Asif Patel, described the film as “blasphemous”, claiming that the film “is reinforced with sectarian ideology” and “distorts mainstream historical narratives” and disrespecting the most revered individuals of Islamic history.”
However, while the movie Executive producer Malik Shlibak said he welcomes people to express their views, arguing that cinemas should “stand up and defend the right to show the movies that people want to see”.
Talking to Guardianshe accused cinemas of “collapsed under pressure and applying these decisions to quell the noise,” adding that the film is an “artistic attempt to talk about and elaborate on the history and religion, which has always had many different interpretations and interpretations. ”
Goddess It’s not the only film to be dropped from UK cinemas in recent weeks. At the end of May, Camera journeyprovocative thriller is growing fast Host directed by Rob Savage, was withdrawn from Vue Cinemas. According to the chain’s customer support, the feature – produced by Blumhouse – was removed after it was deemed potentially offensive to its audience. However, in a subsequent statement to the Movie Story website, it stated that the decision was “entirely informed by unfeasible commercial conditions”.
