Booksmart director criticises airlines over deleted lesbian love scene
- Published
Booksmart director Olivia Wilde has criticised airlines for showing a version of her film with a lesbian love scene cut out.
She says she watched an edited version of Booksmart on a flight and wasn't impressed.
Parts of the film had been cut out including the love scene which she says is an "essential point" in the plot.
She added: "What message is this sending to viewers and especially to women? That their bodies are obscene?"
Beanie Feldstein and Kaitlyn Dever star as Molly and Amy in the film
Booksmart tells the story of two US high school teenagers, Amy and Molly, who decide to live it up on their last day of class.
During one point in the film, there's a sex scene between Amy - played by Kaitlyn Dever - and another character.
Olivia saw on Twitter that people were complaining the scene had been cut from the version of the film being shown on flights.
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On Wednesday she told her followers she had finally been able to see the edited version while on a flight - but didn't say which airline she flew with.
She wrote: "Turns out some airlines work with a third party company that edits the movie based on what they deem inappropriate.
"Which, in our case, is... female sexuality?"
She pointed out that passengers on the flight had to agree to a "parental advisory" before selecting the film - but they were still given a censored version.
Olivia said the parts that were cut out included the word "vagina", a porn scene in a taxi, a masturbation scene and the word "genitals".
But she was especially disappointed that the film had deleted the lesbian love scene.
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She told her followers that swear words hadn't been given the chop - or a scene where a character simulates a sex act on a microphone.
Olivia added: "I urge every airline, especially those who pride themselves on inclusivity, to stop working with this third party company, and trust the parental advisory warning to allow viewers to opt out if they choose."
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- Published8 September 2019
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