Delta has faced controversy as of late after reports that they were censoring LGBTQ content from their in-flight films. According to Variety, romantic scenes from both Booksmart and Rocketman were edited out of the films. Now, Delta has apologized and will be playing full versions of the movies going forward.
“We are immediately putting a new process in place for managing content available through Delta’s in-flight entertainment,” spokeswoman Emma Protis told Variety.
She said, “Studios often provide videos in two forms: a theatrical, original version and an edited version. We selected the edited version and now realize content well within our guidelines was unnecessarily excluded from both films. We are working to make sure this doesn’t happen again.”
Booksmart's Director, Olivia Wilde, was understandably upset when she learned her film was being censored.
“I don’t understand it,” Wilde told Variety at the Academy’s Governors Awards. “There’s censorship, airline to airline, of films, which there must be some kind of governing board to determine. We rate it a certain way. If it’s not X-rated, surely it’s acceptable on an airplane.”
“There’s insane violence of bodies being smashed in half and yet a love scene between two women is censored from the film,” Wilde said. “It’s such an integral part of this character’s journey. I don’t understand it. My heart just broke.”
Protis says the updated versions of both movies will be implemented "as soon as possible."
