Top 13+ controversial Netflix shows and movies that have been removed
Netflix, as we know, has a lot of content. The streaming giant holds the rights to more than 13,000 titles which it distributes across the globe. Generally, that library grows slowly. Although, while new entertainment is always being added, Netflix will quietly remove plenty too. Normally it's less popular shows or films, or things their licence to show has expired on. Sometimes, however, content is taken down because of strict government edict. Worldwide, certain countries occasionally take issues with the TV programmes and movies Netflix makes available. Here are 13 examples of when Netflix has been forced to take down content... (Picture: Metro.co.uk/Netflix/Getty Images)
Night of the Living Dead
George A. Romero practically invented the zombie genre when he made this classic all the way back in 1968. At some point, a particularly gory version of the movie was banned in Germany. Presumably it was this version that Netflix made available to German customers back in 2017. Only 'The Commission for Youth Media Protection', a 'state organisation that is intended to regulate the exposure of children to mass media', made a legal request for Netflix to remove it. And they obliged (Picture: Getty Images)
The Last Temptation of Christ
Martin Scorsese sparked huge controversy with the release of this film back in 1988. Religious groups the world over were disgusted to see Jesus portrayed in the way he was in this epic Paul Schrader-penned drama. Especially the depictions of his 'temptations' regarding Mary Magdalene. Eventually, most folk calmed down and the film became something of a cinematic curio instead of a classic like so many other films of his. The Singapore government's Infocomm Media Development Authority still feel ill will towards the Willem Dafoe-starring film, however. In 2020 they made Netflix delete it from their catalogue in the country (Picture: Universal/Kobal/Shutterstock)
Designated Survivor
An episode from the second season of Designated Survivor, the political thriller starring Kiefer Sutherland, featured the president of Türkiye demanding the immediate extradition of a political opponent of his. Now, of course, this was technically a work of fiction. But it was far too similar to a real-life situation which had gone down in Türkiye not long before filming. As such, the Turkish government enforced a ban on the episode. 'Following a demand from the Turkish regulator, we have removed one episode of Designated Survivor from Netflix in Türkiye only, to comply with local law,' the streaming behemoth said in a statement (Picture: Getty Images)
Cuties
This 2020 film, a Netflix original directed by Maïmouna Doucouré, caused a huge stir globally when it premiered in the US and UK. Criticism centred around the possible sexualisation of children (the film's about an 11-year-old joining a 'free-spirited' dance crew). In Türkiye, the Ministry of Family and Radio and Television Supreme Council (RTÜK) demanded the film not be uploaded to Netflix's Turkish catalogue. Netflix followed the instruction and it was never made available in the country (Picture: Getty Images)
A Good Trip: Adventures in Psychedelics
It's drugs-based controversy for this one. A Good Trip: Adventures in Psychedelics features a selection of famous faces recounting their favourite anecdotes around hallucinogenic drugs. Singapore has some of the strictest drug laws in the world and Netflix was ordered to remove the documentary from being available to watch there (Picture: Getty Images)
The Bridge
In 2015, the New Zealand Film and Video Labeling Body had a bone to pick with Netflix over a documentary film about people attempting to take their own life on the Golden Gate Bridge in San Francisco. They deemed the content to be 'objectionable' and ordered Netflix to pull it from its NZ catalogue (Picture: Getty Images)
Full Metal Jacket
Stanley Kubrick's bruising war movie is adored the world over for its brutal vision of the Hell of war. Well, almost the world over. There is one country that takes issue with the 1987 Vietnam War film. Unsurprisingly, it was Vietnam. The Vietnamese Authority of Broadcasting and Electronic Information (ABEI) has a few issues with how the country is portrayed in the movie and has banned it being shown in the country (Picture: Getty Images)
The Last Hangover
This Netflix original special from Brazilian comedians Porta dos Fundos (pictured) depicts Jesus’s disciples waking up after a huge Last Supper party with hangovers and little memory of the antics of the night before. It was removed in Singapore after the all-too-familiar Infocomm Media Development Authority stepped in. Netflix didn't argue this time, but they had successfully stopped the Brazilian government banning a previous film by Porta dos Fundos called The First Temptation of Christ, in which Jesus is seen as a gay man (Picture: Getty Images)
Patriot Act With Hasan Minhaj
Another piece of content banned by Netflix is just the one single episode of the TV show Patriot Act With Hasan Minhaj. It's a show that is heavily critical of Saudi Arabia and its political regime. You won't be terrible surprised to learn that it was Saudi Arabia that applied for the ban and Netflix complied (Picture: Getty Images)
4 shows about cannabis
It's Singapore’s Infocomm Media Development Authority again. This time, back in 2018, they ordered the culling of three shows about weed culture: Cooking on High, The Legend of 420 and Disjointed. Two years later they again demanded that Netflix wipe another show with a heavy cannabis theme, Cooked with Cannabis, a series where chefs face off to see who can cook and bake the best edibles (Picture: Getty Images) This article was originally published in April 2024
