DUBAI, United Arab Emirates (NEWSnet/AP) — The new blockbuster movie “Spider-Man: Across the Spider-Verse” was removed abruptly from cinema listings in more than a dozen Muslim-majority countries without explanation, apparently over the inclusion of a transgender poster in the background of one frame.

Empire Entertainment, the Middle East distributor for the computer-animated Sony Pictures film, did not respond to multiple requests for comment.

No explicit bans of the film were announced, but there were indications it will not reach screens.

There is no expectation that “Across the Spider-Verse” will be shown in the United Arab Emirates, said a source close to the film who was not authorized to speak publicly. The source cited rigorous censorship of movies for children and younger viewers.

On the official Saudi Cinema twitter page, a statement with a poster of the film attached said the organization will not approve any film that contradicts the nation’s media content regulations and whose “production companies do not commit to implementing the required amendments.”

The superhero film featuring the Marvel Comics character Miles Morales as Spider-Man debuted in U.S. cinemas in early June, tripling the domestic opening weekend revenue of its Oscar-winning prequel.

Initially, it was scheduled to open in the Middle Eeast on June 22, prior to the Muslim holiday of Eid al-Adha. The film was listed in cinema programs as recently as last week in countries such as Kuwait, the UAE, Oman, Saudi Arabia, Qatar, Bahrain, Lebanon, and Egypt, but was abruptly and quietly pulled.

No reasons were given, but the brief transgender reference might have caused offense in Arab countries where Muslim majorities, guided by Islamic law, or Sharia, often consider homosexuality and transgender identity as sinful and contrary to religious beliefs and societal norms.

The film includes a scene where a transgender flag printed with the words “Protect Trans Kids” is hanging in the room of Gwen Stacy, a spider superhero and character voiced by actress Hailee Steinfeld.

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