Marvel blockbuster Avengers: Endgame Encore has been banned from cinemas in Kuwait, despite the original film having screened in the country with cuts.
Kuwaiti cinema chain Cinescape announced the ban ahead of the film's planned release, after tickets had already gone on sale.
“Due to the banning of the movie Avengers: Endgame Encore, the shows have been cancelled. Cinescape will issue a full refund for all bookings. Thank you for your understanding,” the chain posted
Vox Cinemas Kuwait also posted a similar message.
“Avengers: Endgame Encore will no longer be released in Kuwait. We sincerely apologise for any disappointment this may cause,” it posted on Instagram, adding that those who had already bought tickets would receive a refund.
When cinemagoers asked for the reason in the comments, Vox Cinemas responded: “Circumstances beyond our control.”
An official reason has not yet been given for the decision.
The ban comes as Avengers: Endgame Encore opens in cinemas across the Middle East on Thursday, including in the UAE, Saudi Arabia, Oman, Bahrain and Qatar.
What is Avengers: Endgame Encore?
Marvel is returning one of its biggest films to cinemas seven years after its original release as a way of setting up the next chapter in the Marvel Cinematic Universe.
Directed by brothers Anthony and Joe Russo, the original Endgame brought Marvel's Infinity Saga to a conclusion, as the surviving Avengers attempted to reverse the destruction caused by Thanos in Avengers: Infinity War.
The film stars Robert Downey Jr as Tony Stark/Iron Man, Chris Evans as Steve Rogers/Captain America, Chris Hemsworth as Thor, Scarlett Johansson as Natasha Romanoff/Black Widow and Mark Ruffalo as Bruce Banner/Hulk.
Encore brings that film back to the big screen, but with additional material connecting it to Avengers: Doomsday, which is scheduled for release in December. Marvel says the special presentation includes an exclusive preview of Doomsday.
Doomsday will also mark Downey Jr's return to the MCU, this time playing the villain Doctor Doom rather than Iron Man.
Has Avengers: Endgame been banned in Kuwait before?
Avengers: Endgame was released in Kuwait when it first arrived in cinemas in 2019, although the version screened in the country reportedly contained cuts to comply with local censorship requirements.
It is not yet clear whether the additional material in Encore, material contained in the original film, or another issue prompted the latest decision.
Kuwait has previously stopped a number of major Hollywood releases from screening in the country
In 2023, the country's Ministry of Information banned both Barbie and Australian horror film Talk to Me.
At the time, Lafi Al-Subaie, chairman of Kuwait's film censorship committee, said the films contained “ideas and beliefs that are alien to Kuwaiti society and public order”.
He said censors would normally request that scenes deemed contrary to public ethics be removed from foreign films, but that a film could be rejected in its entirety when its broader concepts, message or behaviour were considered unacceptable.
Marvel has also previously fallen foul of Kuwaiti censors.
Doctor Strange in the Multiverse of Madness was banned from cinemas in 2022, with Kuwait's Ministry of Information saying the film violated public morals. Thor: Love and Thunder was also prevented from screening that year.
Avengers: Doomsday's Bahrain connection
Avengers: Doomsday also has a connection to the Gulf, with members of its cast assembling in Bahrain last year as filming was thought to be taking place in the country.
Joe Russo was photographed in Bahrain alongside stars including Anthony Mackie, Simu Liu, Winston Duke, Letitia Wright, Tenoch Huerta, Hannah John-Kamen, Danny Ramirez and Alex Livinalli.
Several of the cast attended a dinner at Address Beach Resort Bahrain in May 2025, while fans also shared photographs of the stars dining at Japanese restaurant Sumosan at the hotel.
Avengers: Endgame Encore is showing in UAE cinemas now; Avengers: Doomsday is scheduled for release on December 18
Source: nationalnews.com