Gay character row leads to cancellation of Turkish Netflix drama

Netflix has cancelled Turkish drama If Only after the country’s government refused to grant it a licence on the grounds that the show featured an openly gay character. Screenwriter Ece Yorenc described this event as ‘very frightening for the future’, and added that there were no explicitly gay scenes in the show. Instead of adhering to censorship orders, Netflix made the decision to cancel the show on the eve of filming.

Netflix issued a general statement to the Financial Times saying that the platform is still committed to bringing content to Turkish subscribers and that there are several more Turkish originals in production. However Mahir Unal – deputy chairman of the Turkish ruling party – stated he hopes Netflix will demonstrate a ‘greater sensitivity to Turkish culture’ in upcoming shows.

While homosexuality is not illegal in modern-day Turkey, there has been an increasing amount of anti-LGBTQ+ legislation in the latter half of this decade, with the Istanbul Pride march being banned for the past five years in a row. In 2019, demonstrations showing support for LGBTQ+ community in the city were dispersed by the police as authorities deemed homosexuality ‘societally objectionable’.

The Istanbul Pride group vowed to continue activism after the events of last year, however the cancellation of If Only has demonstrated that LGBTQ+ voices are still subject to censorship across the region.