A screening incident involving the film Barbie appeared in Tyumen, where a local cinema briefly exhibited a copy of the movie that carried numerous voiceovers and embedded advertising. The event took place at the city’s open-air venue, Gorkiy Cinema, and news outlets reported that all seats for the subsequent showings, priced from around 300 rubles, were fully booked. The staff behind the program confirmed to a television channel that the version shown was obtained illegally and included promotional content. The organizer, however, stated that all watermarks would be removed in future broadcasts and defended the copy as having a professional, multi-voice soundtrack.
According to the organizer, the motive behind the presentation was to offer cinema entertainment amid a difficult local environment and limited access to high-demand releases. He acknowledged the backlash from viewers who labeled the move illegal and unethical with respect to rights holders but argued that for ordinary residents, in a climate where popular films are not readily distributed, this served as a viable alternative.
In a related development, Olga Lyubimova, the Russian Culture Minister, stated that her ministry did not initiate such actions and clarified that applications had been received for the rental of Barbie and Oppenheimer within Russia. Earlier chatter suggested that a pirated Barbie was circulating in Russia even as Greta Gerwig’s film gained more attention than Christopher Nolan’s blockbuster Oppenheimer across some screens. Observers noted that local audiences appeared to gravitate toward Barbie more than Oppenheimer during this period.
Additionally, a former deputy floated the idea of an outright ban on Barbie in Russia, citing concerns over LGBT-related content. The discourse around copyright, accessibility, and cultural reception continued to reflect the broader tensions present in the national film market during this time.