Elton John Movie

Samoa Fa'afafine Association protests censor of Elton John film

Samoa's only cinema revealed the ban on Friday on its Facebook page and employees told local media it was due to the portrayal of gay sex in the film.

In conservative Samoa - where around 98 percent of people identify as Christian - same-sex sexual relations are criminalised, although related laws are unenforced.

Churches also wield considerable influence on communities and institutions.

Samoa bans Elton John movie Rocketman from cinemas

“Unfortunately due to censoring issues, we have had to cancel Rocketman,” the Apollo Cinemas Samoa stated during a Facebook update of its movie screenings for the week.

The cinemas confirmed that the movie was not approved for screening.

This is the second time the Samoa Censorship Board has banned a gay biography – with the first being the movie Milk banned in 2009. This was based on the life of US gay rights activist Harvey Milk.