DUBAI, United Arab Emirates — Moviegoers in the United Arab Emirates saw the screen turn black as frazzled officials broke up the screening of Sylvester Stallone and Arnold Schwarzenegger’s latest action flick after a character was heard cursing in Arabic in the movie.
The National, a state-backed newspaper, reported Monday that the Dubai Media Council asked theaters in the Emirates to halt the screening of the “Escape Plan.”
Authorities quickly censored the profane words out of the film, and the revised version was back in theaters within hours.
The movie features Stallone and Schwarzenegger trying to escape from a futuristic, fortified prison.
Before movies debut in local theaters, Arab governments around the region censor films for content, often cutting out sexual scenes and kissing, as well as comments deemed blasphemous.
