Sir Elton John has condemned Russia’s removal of scenes from Rocketman, the acclaimed film about his life.
It emerged yesterday that Russian “distributors” edited the hit movie, starring Taron Egerton as the legendary singer-songwriter, to take out gay sex scenes.
Sir Elton joined film-makers in describing the decision to cut footage as a “sad reflection of the divided world we still live in”.
The pop star has previously condemned Russia’s gay rights record, receiving a call from president Vladimir Putin.
Sir Elton said the decision showed the “cruelly unaccepting” face of homophobia.
Critics in Russia revealed scenes depicting sexual acts and men kissing had been removed.
A statement from Sir Elton and the Rocketman filmmakers said: “We reject in the strongest possible terms the decision to pander to local laws and censor Rocketman for the Russian market, a move we were unaware of until today.
“That the local distributor has edited out certain scenes is a sad reflection of the divided world we still live in and how it can still be so cruelly unaccepting of the love between two people.
“We believe in building bridges and open dialogue.”
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