Warner Bros. accepted the request from China to remove the dialogue, which included the lines “because I was in with love with you,” spoken by Dumbledore, as well as “the summer Gellert [Mikkelsen] and I fell in love.” (Via News.com.au.) Dumbledore and Grindelwald’s bond remains intact albeit implicit. “Harry Potter” author and mogul J.K. Rowling first announced Dumbledore was gay in 2009, but the films have yet to fully address the character’s sexuality until this most recent entry.

“As a studio, we’re committed to safeguarding the integrity of every film we release, and that extends to circumstances that necessitate making nuanced cuts in order to respond sensitively to a variety of in-market factors,” Warner Bros. told Variety. “Our hope is to release our features worldwide as released by their creators but historically we have faced small edits made in local markets.” Related Ice Cube Claims Warner Bros. Is Still Holding Up More ‘Friday’ Films: ‘They Don’t Know What They’re Doing’ ‘Weird Al’ Yankovic Says Warner Bros. Once Denied His Request to Parody the Harry Potter Theme Related 17 HBO and HBO Max Original Series to Get Excited About in 2023 The 225 Best Horror Movies of All Time
The statement continued, “In the case of ‘Fantastic Beasts: The Secrets of Dumbledore,’ a six-second cut was requested and Warner Bros. accepted those changes to comply with local requirements but the spirit of the film remains intact. We want audiences everywhere in the world to see and enjoy this film, and it’s important to us that Chinese audiences have the opportunity to experience it as well, even with these minor edits.” China has a history of censoring LGBTQ content in mainstream fare, with a recent example including 2019’s “Bohemian Rhapsody,” the musical biopic of queer rock icon Freddie Mercury, from which a number of gay references were excised from the Chinese release of the 20th Century Studios film. The “Fantastic Beasts” censorship hasn’t impacted the box office for “The Secrets of Dumbledore” in China, as the film conquered during its overseas opening weekend (with $9.7 million U.S. dollars in its opening days). The movie opens in the United States on Friday, April 15. Read IndieWire’s review of the film here. Sign Up: Stay on top of the latest breaking film and TV news! Sign up for our Email Newsletters here.