'Call Me By Your Name' Sequel Details Trickle In as Film Gets Pulled From Beijing Film Festival
The critically acclaimed gay romance drama "Call Me By Your Name" was dropped from the Beijing International Film Festival, Sony Pictures has announced. However, there was no explanation provided for the decision.
According to Japan Times, the award-winning film starring Timothee Chalamet and Armie Hammer was included in the initial line-up with other films like "The Square," "Lean on Pete," and "The Other Side of Hope." This is until the screening proposal sent to regulators was not approved.
Beijing-based film analyst Wu Jian tells the abovementioned publication that it is "quite embarrassing for China" for the festival to pull the plug on "Call Me By Your Name," saying that the movie is "in deviation from the policy environment in China."
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The Chinese government has been known to regulate content that goes online and on television for public consumption, often censoring those that include violence or sexual material.
There has been inconsistent response and actions with regards to content with gay themes though. Beijing LGBT Centre executive director Xin Ying said, "There is no clear policy on this issue, so we are always confused."
This is especially worse now that term limits for President Xi Jinping have ended with the Communist Party's publicity department now handling control over film, news, and publishing.
New Now Next believes that this case with "Call Me By Your Name" just goes to show China's fickle relationship with LGBT themes in the media.
The site says that the Chinese government has banned "abnormal sexual behaviors," including homosexuality, from the television and web.
This led to the immediate cancellation of the web series "Addicted," which follows the story of a gay high-school couple, in 2016. In the same year, however, China approved the screening of "Seek McCartney," which, in turn, became the first film to be shown there featuring two gay protagonists.
As of this writing, the festival organizer and the country's State Administration of Press, Publication, Radio, Film and Television have yet to comment on the "Call Me By Your Name" takedown.
Based on the novel by André Aciman, "Call Me By Your Name" is about a summer love story that blooms between 17-year-old Elio, played by Chalamet, and an older student named Oliver portrayed by Hammer.
Among the many accolades and recognition it received, the film directed by Luca Guadagnino and written by James Ivory was deemed the Best Adapted Screenplay at the 2018 Oscars and was nominated for Best Picture. Chalamet was among the nominees for the Best Actor award as well.
The success of the "Call Me By Your Name" already has fans talking about a sequel. In an interview with Collider, Hammer revealed that Guadagnino has told him he plans to film the second movie in "a few years."
"Intentionally, like the Linklater thing," he said, referring to filmmaker Richard Linklater, who is known for his "Before" trilogy, each of which he filmed over the extended period of years with the same actors.
Hammer said that he was not told downright that a sequel will be made although he was aware that the "Call Me By Your Name" movie did not cover the time jump in the novel that catches up with the characters years later.
"When I signed on for this, it wasn't like, 'We're gonna do another one.' No one has signed contracts. We don't have a studio. There's not even a script. The book jumps forward several years, and you see when Oliver is a professor and Elio is a piano player," Hammer explained.
"I think people really responded well to the movie and the way Luca directed it. They obviously really responded well to Timmy [Chalamet]. So, if they want another one, that's a huge compliment," he continued.
When asked if he thinks the "Call Me By Your Name" sequel will see the light of day, the actor said, "it could very well happen."
