Disney+ streams banned sci-fi epic, almost 40 years after scene first "caused terror"

Disney+ has removed a 4K remaster of a sci-fi classic it only recently made available to stream.

It was pointed out to the streaming service that the film contained a scene that the British Board of Film Classification (BBFC) previously ordered to be cut.

T3 was informed by the UK's Royal Society for the Prevention of Cruelty to Animals (RSPCA) that James Cameron's The Abyss had the scene removed when it was first released in 1989, but the new remaster accidentally left it in.

The scene showed live rats being submerged in fluorocarbon liquid, which took place during filming. And while it was claimed the rats survived the process, the scene was prohibited. It was said at the time that the "forcible immersion of the rat… caused terror".

The Abyss | Remastered 4K In Theaters | Official Trailer - YouTube

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All UK home versions of the film have been released without the scene, including on DVD and Blu-ray, so it's inclusion on the streaming service came as somewhat a shock to many, including the RSPCA. But it welcomes the service's steps to remove it.

"This isn't about cancel culture – we'd welcome Disney+ reinstating the film to their platform, just with this troubling scene removed – as is already the case in cinemas, on TV, and on DVD," said the RSPCA's head of public affairs, David Bowles.

There's currently no indication on when or if it might return. The unedited version still seems to be available on the US version of Disney+, as that is not governed by BBFC guidelines.

For those in the UK wanting to see the sci-fi epic while waiting for Disney to make an edited version available, it can be rented or bought across digital retail services, such as Amazon Prime Video and Apple TV.

The cinematic cut was also available to stream on ITVX until recently, but has also been removed.