The blockbuster “Spider-Man: Brand New Day” has fallen foul of censors in both Russia and Ukraine, according to reports, due to a song in the film by a Russian singer who has condemned Moscow’s full-scale invasion. The 2024 song "Monopoly" by Elizaveta Gyrdymova, better known by her stage name Monetochka, was included the soundtrack of the latest version of the Marvel franchise. It is heard in a scene where the character Peter Parker is at the New Avengers headquarters in Brighton Beach and meets Yelena Belova, portrayed by Florence Pugh.
Monetochka left Russia after being designated a foreign agent by the Russian Justice Ministry over her criticism of Russia's aggression in Ukraine. Her outspoken anti-war position has included her raising money for Ukrainian refugees. Despite her anti-war stance, the Ukrainian theatrical release of the film which premiered in Kyiv on July 29 was followed by social media reaction opposing the appearance of any Russian song.
The country’s Planeta Kino theater chain said that the song had been completely removed from the Ukrainian version of the film, according to independent outlet Meduza which noted that its distributor B&H Film Distribution did not explain the removal. But the Russian version of the film has followed suit, apparently due to Monetochka’s status as a Kremlin critic. Like most major Western releases, the film has no official distribution in Russia after Sony Pictures suspended operations due to the war.
But Russian theaters are showing unofficial copies of the film, where Monetochka’s song “Monopoly” was removed and replaced with an instrumental track and her name cut from the credits, according to the publication "Caution, news." Film critic Tamara Khodova, who attended an advance screening, revealed how happy she was to see the song in the film and that the director Destin Daniel Cretton said he was pleased with the reaction to the song. A criminal case was opened against Monetochka in Russia In September 2024 for "evading the duties of a foreign agent" and she is living in exile in Lithuania, according to reports. A Russian judge this year sentenced her in absentia to one year in prison.
Russia-based journalist Bryan McDonald noted on X how Monetochka “finds herself in the bizarre position of being censored from both the Russian and Ukrainian versions of the new Spider-Man film.” “For Russia she is insufficiently loyal, but for Ukraine she remains excessively Russian,” he posted. Newsweek has contacted Sony Pictures for comment. Contact Newsweek editor on this story: Edward Pearcey.
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