Featured Image Credit: A24.
Topics: News, Horror, Film and TV
Keryn Donnelly
The unexpected Aussie horror hit Talk To Me has been banned in Kuwait because of one cast member.
The Hollywood Reporter confirmed the country decided to ban the horror movie, not because of its plot, but because of the presence of non-binary trans actor Zoe Terakes.
Terakes, who confirmed they were undergoing gender confirming surgery in 2022, released a statement on social media in response to the move.
“Our film doesn’t actually ever mention my transness, or my queerness," Zoe said.
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"I am a trans actor who happened to get the role. I’m not a theme. I am a person. Kuwait has banned this film due to my identity alone."
They continued: “As much as it is very sad to be on the receiving end of this, what is even more heartbreaking is what this precedent means for the queer and trans people of Kuwait.
"Representation is hope. Representation is a light at the end of the tunnel, a reason to keep going, something to hold onto in the dark, a voice that whispers things can be better than they are.
"Eliminating trans actors on screens will not eliminate trans people (as much as the government of Kuwait wishes it would) but it will eliminate a lot of hope.”
The 23-year-old actor said their heart breaks for the 'trans people and queer people of Kuwait who have so few places to look'.
Kuwait has a history of banning films featuring any LBGTQ scenes or references, with Spider-Man: Across the Spider-Verse, Everything Everywhere All at Once, Thor: Love and Thunder, Lightyear, Doctor Strange in the Multiverse of Madness, Eternals and West Side Story all being banned in the country.
Talk To Me, which was directed by Australian brothers Danny and Michael Philippou, follows a group of friends who discover how to conjure spirits by using an embalmed hand.
They become hooked on the new thrill, until one of them unleashes a terrifying supernatural force.
In a recent interview with Empire, Danny Philippou spoke about the importance of casting Terakes in the role.
“Zoe, who plays Hayley, even though they’re not a main character, I was not going to shoot the film unless they were available, because I knew they were just so perfect for the role," he said.
Talk To Me is the Philippou brothers' feature film directorial debut and it already has a 94 per cent approval rating on Rotten Tomatoes and is being called the 'best horror movie of 2023'.