South Africa’s major cinemas have pulled the documentary about US first lady Melania Trump ahead of its release, with the distributor citing the “current climate”, local media reported.
South African distributor Filmfinity abruptly pulled the film from its schedule.
On Thursday, one day before the international release, the documentary did not appear on the posters of the Nu Metro or Ster Kinekor cinemas, the two main theater chains in the country, News writes.
“Given the current climate, the film will no longer be released in cinemas in the country”, Thobashan Govindarajulu, the distributor’s marketing manager, told News24.
He did not specify what “climate” he was referring to, and AFP could not immediately contact a company representative for details.
The South African government has strained relations with President Donald Trump’s administration, which has criticized Pretoria’s stance on several domestic and international policy issues.
In addition to a pretense “persecution” of the Afrikaners – the descendants of the first European settlers -, the American administration has repeatedly reproached Pretoria for its proximity to Moscow and the complaint for “genocide” submitted to the International Court of Justice (ICJ) against Israel for the war in Gaza.
