Despite Its Ban in Many Countries, Why Did MBS Insist on Screening Barbie in Saudi Arabia?

Prior to assuming his role as Crown Prince of Saudi Arabia and becoming the de facto ruler of the kingdom in 2017, Mohammed bin Salman initiated a Western-style but morally controversial openness in the land of the Two Holy Mosques.

Saudi citizens wishing to watch prohibited movies in their homeland used to travel to Bahrain.

They would cross the King Fahd Causeway on the Arabian Gulf, covering a distance of 500 kilometers to watch just one film.

However, this time, it is quite ironic that residents of Bahrain and other Gulf countries flocked to the kingdom to watch movies banned in their own countries following the banning of Barbie.

The controversial American film, which includes ideas challenging traditional family values and supports LGBTQ+ rights, was banned in Bahrain, Kuwait, and several other countries while rolled out in Saudi Arabia and the UAE.

 

Youth Distraction

Barbie would hit over 60 Saudi cinemas to ensure a larger audience comprising Saudis and Gulf nationals visiting the kingdom. Saudi Arabia has a total of 66 cinema halls with 607 screens and over 62,500 seats, funded by seven cinema operators, spread across 20 Saudi cities, as per the General Commission of Audiovisual Media (GCAM).

The marketing campaign for the film in Saudi Arabia cost $150 million, according to Arab News. The film revolves around the famous doll that first appeared over 60 years ago. It has faced criticism for “undermining traditional gender norms,” as the film’s protagonist, Ken, is portrayed as subordinate to Barbie’s orders.

The film satirizes masculinity, and its main character, Barbie, dreams of a world where women govern, and both genders enjoy equality, according to AFP, on August 14, 2023.

Barbie has grossed over a billion dollars since its release on July 21, 2023.

The Wall Street Journal reported on August 17, 2023, that Mohammed bin Salman did not ban Barbie because he seeks to distract Saudi youth from protesting against deteriorating economic and human rights conditions, in addition to connecting them to global secular trends.

It emphasized that bin Salman did not just quietly allow Barbie to hit Saudi cinemas but also organized large nighttime celebrations near cinema halls, featuring DJ music, photo booths, hairstyling stations, and the sale of doll accessories to attract more young people, both male and female.

It was confirmed that the kingdom, long regarded as a symbol of conservative Islam, allowed Barbie to hit cinemas despite its ban in other Islamic nations because of its content regarding sexual deviation, LGBTQ+ representation, and gender fluidity.

The New York Times, in an article dated August 14, 2023, highlighted how the Saudi audience’s embrace of the Barbie film reflects the evolving scene in the kingdom, which, just eight years ago, had no cinema theaters.

Saudi officials disregarded criticisms surrounding the film’s screening; the youth enthusiastically embraced it, donning pink-themed attire when heading to the cinema halls.

The New York Times noted the anger within Saudi Arabia after accepting Barbie in Saudi cinemas, as it carries messages that contradict societal values, such as promoting LGBTQ+ culture and extreme feminism.

Many Saudis hesitate to openly express their disapproval concerning the film, fearing repercussions from Mohammed bin Salman’s regime.

However, the American newspaper highlighted that despite bin Salman’s efforts to loosen many of the societal constraints since his rise to power, he simultaneously escalated political repression and imprisoned conservative clerics and activists.

 

Encouraging the ‘Forbidden’

Not only did bin Salman’s regime accept the film in Saudi cinemas, but government-affiliated media extensively promoted it despite popular criticism rejecting its screening within the kingdom.

Saudi newspapers and TV channels published dozens of reports to encourage attendance for the film and urged Gulf citizens whose countries banned its screening, like Kuwait and Bahrain, to travel to the kingdom to watch it.

The government-affiliated newspaper Asharq al-Awsat published over 13 articles about the Barbie film, which Saudi cinemas began screening on August 10, 2023, to promote it, amid a wave of anger and criticism from Saudi society.

To encourage Gulf nationals to attend, the newspaper mentioned on August 12, 2023, that “Saudi cinemas are a haven for Gulf citizens seeking refuge from strict constraints.”

The film’s screening was described as one of the “cultural openness gains” currently being experienced in the kingdom, with its positive impact extending not only to Saudis but also to Gulf nationals who found Saudi cinemas as an outlet to escape the strict restrictions imposed in their home countries.

This prompted Gulf-based Twitter users, including the Emirati political science professor with close ties to government circles, Abdulkhaleq Abdulla, to applaud what they called the “courage of Saudi Arabia and the UAE in screening the Barbie film.”

Sarcastically, one user asked, “Are Kuwait and Lebanon more concerned about preserving values and morals than Saudi Arabia and the UAE?” before later deleting the tweet.

The official Kuwait News Agency (KUNA) quoted Lafi al-Subaie, the Deputy Minister of Information and the head of the Cinematic Films Supervisory Committee, affirming the committee’s commitment to preventing anything that violates public decency, incites violations of public order, traditions, or customs, or promotes foreign ideologies contrary to society.

In Lebanon, Minister of Culture Abbas Mortada took action to prevent the screening of the film, stating that it “promotes LGBTQ+ themes and gender transformation and contradicts moral and religious values.”

 

Entertainment for Silence

The Hollywood Reporter stated on August 11, 2023, that it was a significant turnaround and a contradictory scene to see Saudi Arabia allow Barbie to hit cinemas while it was banned in some Gulf and Islamic countries. These countries considered the film offensive to public decency and promoted foreign ideologies contrary to society.

The report notes that “ More than a decade on, and, thanks to the 35-year ban on cinemas being lifted in late 2017, Saudi Arabia now has a burgeoning cinema industry of its own and boasts one of the fastest growing box offices on the planet as multiplexes open up in every city.”

The Wall Street Journal reported on December 27, 2021, about a new social contract sought by Crown Prince Mohammed bin Salman, aiming to grant Saudi youth social freedoms like going to the cinema, dancing, and wearing non-traditional clothing in exchange for remaining silent about political repression.

 

The Saudi Government’s Gamble on Entertainment

The government in this conservative Islamic kingdom is banking on film festivals, music, dancing, and gender mixing to provide Saudi youth with a means of entertainment, contributing to the erosion of established social norms.

However, critics argue that Crown Prince Mohammed bin Salman’s social reforms do not address deep-rooted issues and are abrupt, artificial changes to social customs that will encounter a set of challenges.

Foreign Policy noted on December 20, 2021, that the social changes initiated by bin Salman have caused a cultural clash, pushing some Saudi youth away from the Islamic way of life. Instead, they steer them towards Western culture, which has led to a rise in drug use and moral decline.

CNN also commented on Saudi Arabia hosting the MDLBEAST music and dance festival three times in 2019, 2021, and 2022 amid strong criticism from Saudis for the growing moral deviations associated with such events.

On November 30, 2022, the same source stated that these festivals have become part of a liberalization initiative led by bin Salman, transforming the state known for being the birthplace of Islam.

It emphasized that what happens in the land of the Two Holy Mosques could not have been imagined in Saudi Arabia, not only because the kingdom houses the holiest Islamic sites but also because these festivals violate social norms and allow unrestricted gender mixing.

Hence, Saudi Arabia’s decision to screen the Barbie film, despite its moral and cultural contradictions, along with its promotion and encouragement for Gulf residents to visit the holy land to watch it, carries, in the opinion of many critics and opposition figures, significant and ominous implications.

The most alarming of which is its impact on the youth, whom bin Salman aims to corrupt and distract from human rights violations, ensuring their loyalty to cover up oppression and corruption.