Streaming platform Mubi has cancelled its long planned Mubi Fest Istanbul at the eleventh hour after the city governor banned a screening of Luca Guadagnino’s LGBTI+ themed movie Queer, which was to have been the opening film.

The arthouse streamer said it pulled the MUBI Fest in Istanbul in the “name of protecting freedom of expression and artistic expression.”

Mubi Fest Istanbul was due to open with Luca Guadagnino's 'Queer' but the film was deemed a threat to public peace

Turkish authorities increasingly intervening in movie screenings and festivals citing 'danger to public peace'

Mubi has scrapped an entire festival it had planned in Turkey after local authorities banned a screening of Luca Guadagnino’s “Queer.” The arthouse distributor and streamer was due to hold the annual Mubi Fest Istanbul in the Turkish capital between Nov.

"This ban not only targets a single film but also undermines the very essence and purpose of the festival," a company statement said after the local government banned the opening night feature.