A beloved sci-fi classic from the director of Titanic and Avatar has been pulled from Disney Plus in the UK over the presence of an illegal scene. The Abyss, by legendary director James Cameron, includes a scene which sees a rat being dunked in a vat of fluorocarbon liquid, and a real rat was used in filming the scene.
Because of animal harm laws over films in the UK, the movie could have been banned in the UK unless the offending illegal scene was cut out. When The Abyss was released in 1989, the scene had to be cut out for its UK release after a campaign by the RSPCA. The rat is believed to have survived, but the after-effects of its dunking in a vat of liquid are not known. The British Board of Film Classification (BBFC), which issues age ratings to all films released in the UK, forced the film to be cut and remove the offending scene under the Cinematograph Films (Animals) Act 1937.
That law stipulates that no film can be released in the UK which contains scenes in which a real animal was harmed or suffered. Violating this law can carry both a fine and a prison sentence. The Video Recordings Act 1984 was also used to cut the scene later on home video release – meaning the scene had to be cut out on DVD and Bluray releases in the UK later on too, and the scene cannot be shown on TV.
Despite all these legal restrictions in place on every variant of the film in the UK, the uncut version was added to Disney Plus in the UK in April.
Following its addition, the RSPCA called out the ‘loophole’ which had allowed it to go onto the streaming service – because online streaming is not bound by the same laws as cinema and home DVD releases.
David Bowles, Head of Public Affairs for the animal charity, said in May: “The RSPCA is really concerned that a loophole currently exists allowing animal abuse scenes deemed unacceptable elsewhere to be streamed freely and legally into our homes.
“The Abyss’ controversial rat scene has long concerned the RSPCA, and has always been deemed unacceptable by BBFC — so it’s hard to fathom out why Disney Plus has decided to broadcast it.
“We need to ensure people are not being exposed to content which promotes or showcases cruelty to animals.
“As the way millions of households consume entertainment changes, it’s vital the legal framework is responsive to that and continues to consistently protect people and animals.”
Following the row, the film has now been pulled from Disney Plus entirely in the UK.
The Abyss currently has 89% score on Rotten Tomatoes. It’s been dubbed as ‘technically brilliant’ and a ‘visual tour de force’ including ‘the greatest underwater sequences ever seen on film’. The story involves a top secret recovery operation of a nuclear submaine ambushed deep underwater in mysterious circumstances.