Gay Dialogue Between Jude Law And Mads Mikkelsen Removed From ‘Fantastic Beasts 3’ For Chinese Audiences

ET Canada 2022-04-13 Rachel West

Warner Bros has removed dialogue referencing a gay relationship between Jude Law's Albus Dumbledore and Mads Mikkelsen's Gellert Grindelwald in the version of "Fantastic Beasts: The Secrets Of Dumbledore" released in China.

In the Chinese version of the movie, the dialogue between the two men that includes the phrases "because I was in love with you" and "the summer Gellert and I fell in love" has been removed. Warner Bros states, according to Variety, that though the lines have been edited out, the "spirit of the film remains intact," including the understanding that the two characters had once been in love.

Author J.K. Rowling revealed Dumbledore was gay in 2009, though the movies have never explicitly made reference to his sexuality until now.

Warner Bros' statement says the studio is "committed to safeguarding the integrity of every film we release" and that means "sensitively" making "nuanced cuts" for certain international markets.

"In the case of 'Fantastic Beasts: The Secrets of Dumbledore', a six-second cut was requested and Warner Bros accepted those changes to comply with local requirements, but the spirit of the film remains intact," the studio says. "We want audiences everywhere in the world to see and enjoy this film, and it's important to us that Chinese audiences have the opportunity to experience it as well, even with these minor edits."

Homosexuality has been legal in mainland China for more than two decades and as of 2001, the Chinese Society of Psychiatry stopped classifying it as a mental disorder. However, same-sex marriage is not recognized and the LGBTQ+ community still struggles with acceptance within traditional society.