Chinese Studio Edits Australian Film to Exclude Same-Sex Couple

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A global movie distributor has demanded a Chinese company “cease distributing” an Australian film, after reports it used artificial intelligence to remove a queer couple.

The film Together stars Dave Franco and Alison Brie, who experience supernatural forces that affect their bodies, minds, and relationship.

After screenings of the film in China, audiences noticed that a previously same-sex male couple getting married had been altered, with one of their faces swapped with a woman’s.

The film’s global distributor, Neon, has criticised the alteration of the film in China, seemingly another attempt by the country to censor depictions of queer characters in the media.

On Wednesday, Neon informed Hollywood news outlet Deadline that it “does not approve” of the “unauthorised” edit and has demanded that the distributor Hishow stop distributing the modified version.

Two versions of an image featuring three people in white robes, one of which has been digitally altered to replace a man's face with a woman's.

Global movie distributor Neon has insisted that a Chinese company “cease distributing” the Australian horror film Together, following reports that artificial intelligence was employed to edit out a queer couple from a same-sex wedding scene. Source: Supplied / Neon/Hishow

It is not the first time that films have been altered for viewing in China, with cuts and edits made to films like Bohemian Rhapsody in recent years to conceal nudity and sexuality.

While it’s been common for the country to edit out characters and scenes, the use of AI appears relatively new.

The 2023 film Oppenheimer was also altered with AI technology in China, digitally adding a black dress to a character to cover her exposed skin.

This media censorship also stretched to newspapers.

A 2021 study by the Lowy Institute revealed that Chinese-language community media outlets in Australia are publishing news censored by translators they use in China to avoid potential repercussions in the country.

Staff working in mainland China exercised self-censorship when translating news stories taken from mainstream Australian media into Chinese for community newspapers, according to the report.

Researchers found the writers feared retribution by the Chinese authorities over any content perceived as negative.

Together was scheduled for general release in China on 19 September. But after the backlash, the film’s Chinese distributor halted those plans without explanation.