Cartoon pulled off air over LGBTQ+ scare
This was after a post on Threads on Sunday (Nov 16), in which a user claimed to have spotted a scene where two male characters kissed.
The issue was then picked up by PAS, which urged the government to...
RTM has pulled the animated cartoon “Santiago of the Seven Seas” off the air after viewers raised concerns about LGBTQ+ influences.
This was after a post on Threads on Sunday (Nov 16), in which a user claimed to have spotted a scene where two male characters kissed.
The issue was then picked up by PAS, which urged the government to take action.
The two characters, Rio and Martin, are a gay merfolk couple. The post included a snapshot from a 2023 episode where Rio kissed Martin on the cheek.
The show ended that year, indicating that the episode aired on Sunday was a rerun.
RTM, in a statement yesterday, denied there were any LGBTQ+ elements in the episode aired on Sunday.
They said a content review found there were no elements of acts or warmth that depicted a same sex relationship, nor were there any elements in that direction.
However, it said it is still pulling the show off RTM2 to conduct a thorough review to ensure there are no elements that raise doubt or touch on cultural sensitivities.
“Santiago of the Seven Seas” is about the titular eight-year-old pirate going on adventures around the Caribbean.
The American show was partially produced in Malaysia by animation studio Lemon Sky.
The censorship of the cartoon show comes just two days after a music video by girl group Dolla was removed from circulation following criticism by de facto Religious Affairs Minister Na’im Mokhtar and others for being too “sexy”.
