Delta Air Lines is showing an edited versions of Carol on flights, leading some viewers to believe that Cate Blanchett and Rooney Mara never kiss in the lesbian-themed film.
The disappointing news was brought to our attention when comedian Cameron Esposito watched the film on a Delta Air Lines flight and tweeted about the edit.
Watched CAROL on a plane & they edited it so the main characters never even kiss. Booooooo.
Two women kissing is fine for planes.— Cameron Esposito (@cameronesposito) August 3, 2016
BTW my seatmate totally watching something where Paul Giamatti was participating in BDSM w/ a lady but CAROL had no kissing!?
VERY MAD.— Cameron Esposito (@cameronesposito) August 3, 2016
This is not dirty pic.twitter.com/zDOZMDIGXS
— Cameron Esposito (@cameronesposito) August 3, 2016
For real @delta: I fly w/ u all the time. Platinum medallion. Why is every kiss edited out of the version of CAROL you show onboard?
— Cameron Esposito (@cameronesposito) August 3, 2016
The tweet garnered tons of attention and anger from the comedian’s followers, and some revealed that after watching the film for the first time on flights, they believed that the two main characters NEVER kissed in the film. Even singer Mary Lambert admitted she thought it had been a director’s choice.
A bunch of queer gals responded that they watched CAROL on a plane & didn't know the main characters kiss. THEY KISS https://t.co/XTAU19BPga
— Cameron Esposito (@cameronesposito) August 4, 2016
@cameronesposito @Delta wait WHAT!? I saw it on a Delta flight and thought that the director/producer chose that creatively.
— Mary Lambert (@marylambertsing) August 3, 2016
@cameronesposito @Delta I was like "oh wow crazy sexual tension with no release- poor gay ladies" BUT COME ON. Crazy.
— Mary Lambert (@marylambertsing) August 3, 2016
According to AfterEllen, Delta Air Lines’ Corporate Communications representative Liz Savadelis released this statement:
There were two versions of this film that the studio makes available–one that is edited and one that is not edited. The edited version removes two explicit scenes that do not meet our guidelines. The edited version also removes all kissing. The other version is fully non-edited and includes the kissing, but it also includes the explicit scenes. Unfortunately, Delta doesn’t have the rights to edit the movie, or to make the decision to keep some of that content (e.g. kissing).
Because of the explicit scenes included in the non-edited version, we chose the edited version. This is consistent with what is available to all airlines.
The Weinstein Company—Carol's studio—has not yet commented on the edit.
It has not been confirmed what other airlines use this edited version of Carol. But Carol writer Phyllis Nagy tweeted that other domestic airlines, such as American and United, feature the theatrical version of the film.
@trishbendix @Delta domestic airlines that took the theatrical rather than edited version: American and United.
— Phyllis Nagy (@PhyllisNagy) August 4, 2016
Considering the amount of heterosexual sex scenes available on in-flight movies, showing this edited version of Carol was a poor move for airlines that claim to be LGBT-friendly.
Do you think queer romances should get equal treatment on in-flight entertainment? Tweet your support using the hashtag #FreeCarol.
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