Only two weeks following its launch on May 27th, 2020,HBO Maxhas removed the 1939 historical romance dramaGone With the Windfrom its service. In response to the ongoing Black Lives Matter movement, WarnerMedia has announced that it plans to add the film to the streaming service once again in the future uncut or edited, however the company will take measures to address some of its “racist depictions” and “a denouncement of those very depictions.”
WhileGone With the Windhas become a classic of Hollywood blockbuster films andwent on to win eight Academy Awards, the film has been widely criticized for its depiction of Southern plantation life for black Americans and glorification of the Confederate States of America. In recent years, many filmmakers such asBlacKkKlansmandirector Spike Lee have criticized the film and, just yesterday,12 Years a Slavescreenwriter John Ridley posted a op-ed in the Los Angeles Times criticizing the film as “a film that, when it is not ignoring the horrors of slavery, pauses only to perpetuate some of the most painful stereotypes of people of color.”
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Commenting on the film’s removal from the platform, a spokesperson for HBO Max stated “Gone With the Windis a product of its time and depicts some of the ethnic and racial prejudices that have, unfortunately, been commonplace in American society. These racist depictions were wrong then and are wrong today, and we felt that to keep this title up without an explanation and a denouncement of those depictions would be irresponsible. These depictions are certainly counter to WarnerMedia’s values, so when we return the film to HBO Max, it will return with a discussion of its historical context and a denouncement of those very depictions, but will be presented as it was originally created, because to do otherwise would be the same as claiming these prejudices never existed. If we are to create a more just, equitable and inclusive future, we must first acknowledge and understand our history.”
Unlike the likes of Disney, who havecontinuously refused to release films such asSong of the South, a film which has also been heavily criticized for its romanticization of slavery, WarnerMedia seems to be open to re-releasingGone With the Windwith a disclaimer outlining that the company does not agree with the prejudice on display in the film itself.
