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‘I think they got chicken’: Denzel Washington says gay kiss was cut from Gladiator II

The actor who stars in Ridley Scott’s sequel said: ‘I kissed a guy full on the lips – I guess they weren’t ready for that yet’

Denzel Washington has speculated that anxiety was behind the decision to cut a same-sex kiss from Gladiator II. Washington, whose performance as ruthless power broker Macrinus in Ridley Scott’s sequel has picked up considerable awards buzz, told Variety: “I actually kissed a man in the film but they took it out, they cut it, I think they got chicken.” Mainstream films regularly trim scenes featuring LGBTQ+ content either wholesale or in international cuts, to avoid being censored in less tolerant countries.

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