New West Side Story stopped in the Middle East

The classic Romeo and Juliet story 

, about rival families and impossible love, now comes in a new version by Steven Spielberg.

But in Saudi Arabia, Kuwait, Bahrain, Oman, Qatar or the United Arab Emirates, you will not be able to see the film.  

The countries have chosen not to buy in

.

According to The Hollywood Reporter, the reason is believed to be the character Anybody, a transgender person, who in the film is played by Iris Menas.

Already in the original version of the film from 1961, the character's gender affiliation was indefinite, and in the new version, Anybody's gender identity as a transgender person has become even clearer.

Among several Gulf states, homosexuality and transsexuality are prohibited or considered immoral. 

Recently, the countries temporarily stopped the movie 

, because Disney refused to cut a scene where two people of the same sex kiss each other.

In the end, the company agreed to cut off all intimate scenes, and some countries in the Gulf region then allowed the film to be released. 

West Side Story has its cinema premiere in Sweden on Friday 10 December.