Update 4/16: A Disney spokesperson has informed TheWrap that the original report on the cuts in Indonesia is inaccurate. More details here.
Indonesia’s Film Censorship Institute has announced on Saturday that it will be cutting seven minutes from “Avengers: Infinity War,” and the film’s co-director Joe Russo is “taken aback.”
According to the Jakarta Post and Kompas, the Marvel movie’s run time will be cut down to 149 minutes. The censorship board’s chairman explained that since the film has their equivalent of a PG-13 rating, it must abide by guidelines concerning violent content that can be seen by underage audiences.
Russo was asked about the censorship at a press conference for the film this weekend and said that he hadn’t previously been aware that some countries were considering removing portions of the film.
“I can’t image what seven minutes they would want to cut out of the movie,” Russo said. “It’s the first we’re hearing of it so we’re a little taken aback, but yes, of course as an artist you don’t want anybody censoring anything or taking anything out of the film. This is a PG-13 movie, it’s not like it’s some radical piece of content so I’m a little shocked.”
This isn’t the first time censorship in a Marvel film has made headlines. In India, audio from the battle between T’Challa and M’Baku in “Black Panther” was cut out, as M’Baku cries out the name of the Hindu deity Hanuman.
“Avengers: Infinity War” will hit theaters in Indonesia on April 25, two days earlier than most countries worldwide. The film’s original May 4 release in the U.S. was moved up a week to reduce the chance of spoilers.