Both actors as well as Imelda Staunton, Andrew Scott, Joe Gilgun and director Matthew Warchus add their names to an open letter protesting the prohibition of the movie.
- Jul 7, 2018
AceShowbiz - Bill Nighy, Dominic West and Imelda Staunton have condemned Turkish authorities for banning the screening of their 2014 movie "Pride".
Andrew Scott, Joe Gilgun and director Matthew Warchus are among the other Pride cast and crew to add their names to an open letter protesting the prohibition of the movie, as well as the country boycotting the annual Pride march.
"As members of the creative team which produced the 2014 film 'Pride', and activists portrayed in that film, we are disturbed by reports of the growing repression of the LGBT+ community in Turkey culminating in the recent ban of the annual Pride parade and police violence against those who courageously defied the ban," the letter reads. "Reports that the Ankara authorities also banned a screening of the film Pride are a chilling reminder that political authoritarianism regards artistic expression as its enemy."
The annual LGBT+ march has been forbidden in the European nation for the last three years, and though a screening of Warchus' feature was scheduled in the Turkish capital on June 28, a report from Hurriyet Daily News claimed that the governor's office scrapped plans, arguing the movie could "incite hatred and enmity".
The letter - which has also been signed by writer Stephen Beresford and producer David Livingstone - continued: "We send our unshakeable solidarity and support to LGBT+ people in Turkey who are now challenging the ban on LGBT+ events in Turkey. We deplore the decision of the Ankara Governate in banning the screening of 'Pride', and call on the ambassador for Turkey in London, Abdurrahman Bilgic, and the UK foreign secretary Boris Johnson, to condemn the repressive actions of the Turkish authorities."
"Pride" was nominated for the Golden Globe Award for Best Motion Picture – Musical or Comedy following its release, as well as the BAFTA for Best British Film, Best Actress in a Supporting Role for Staunton and Outstanding Debut by a British Writer, Director or Producer for Beresford and Livingstone.
