PETALING JAYA, Sept 20 — The Film Censorship Board (LPF) have “cancelled” the screening of the movie Hustlers, based on Jessica Pressler’s magazine article “The Hustlers At Scores”.
The film, featuring a star-studded cast of Jennifer Lopez, Constance Wu, Keke Palmer, Julia Stiles, Lili Reinhart, Lizzo and Cardi B, was initially scheduled for release on September 19 across Malaysia.
The press preview screening on September 18 was also called off at the last minute, leaving members of the public, who won tickets to catch the movie frustrated.
The story of a group of strippers in New York City who hustle wealthy stock traders and CEOs during the economic collapse of 2008, premiered on September 7 at the Toronto Film Festival in Canada.
While the film has garnered mixed reviews, Lopez’s performance has been noted a possible front-runner for an Oscar nomination.
TGV Cinemas Malaysia announced yesterday that the film was “not sanctioned to release in Malaysia” by LPF and apologised for any inconvenience “the sudden news may have caused.”
While there has been no official statement as to why the screening was banned, a source told Malay Mail that the film was probably banned because there were “too many cuts” and scenes of “nudity”.
It wouldn’t be the first time that a raunchy film has been banned in Malaysia as films like The Danish Girl and Fifty Shades Darker were also prohibited from screening for its overtly-sexual themes.
LPF has yet to respond to queries on the status of the film.
