BTS, Justin Bieber, and Lady Gaga censored in Chinese broadcast of Friends Reunion

K-pop sensation BTS were one of the guests on the highly anticipated “Friends: The Reunion.” The HBO special, hosted by James Corden, saw the main cast reunite on set for a memorable evening. Jennifer Aniston, Courteney Cox, Lisa Kudrow, Matt LeBlanc, Matthew Perry, and David Schwimmer were back on the iconic couch for the first time since the show ended.

BTS members were featured for a six-minute pre-taped segment where the group discussed the impact "Friends" had on their respective formative years. It was a heartwarming bit that showed the global reach of the popular NBC sitcom. However, according to Variety, such a segment was removed from all Chinese platforms, including iQiyi, Youku, and Tencent.

BTS members weren't the only ones eliminated. Pop stars Justin Bieber and Lady Gaga, who were also guest stars on the special, were removed in the same way. All LGBTQ+ scenes were scrubbed, and Matt LeBlanc's infamous appearance in his underwear was also removed.

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The reason why BTS and others were censored

Some fans speculated that BTS' exclusion resulted from RM's speech during the group's acceptance of the James A. Van Fleet award. RM thanked several Korean soldiers who sacrificed their lives during the Korean war. Chinese netizens were upset that he didn't mention the Chinese soldiers who died in the war. It should be noted that China supported North Korea in the war.

BTS win James A. Van Fleet award (Image via BTS Spain)

Chinese BTS fans were upset about this censorship and vented their frustration on Weibo. One of the posts read,

"Help! Are we never going to move on and change? This will just make me want to find out more about the cut scenes."

While the official broadcast was edited, some fans circulated censored scenes on social media, while others shared the uncensored episode.

It is unclear whether the government ordered this censorship or if the streaming platforms like iQiyi, Youku, and Tencent Video took a preventive measure to avoid passing "politically sensitive" content.

The amount of material cut from the entire broadcast varied. iQiyi's version was six minutes shorter than the original 1:44:00. The Tencent Video version cuts about five minutes of footage and Youku about four minutes.

During their slot, BTS members spoke about their love for the show. RM talked about love and friendship in the context of the show. All members of the group seemed to share a deep connection to the American sitcom.

Lady Gaga was previously banned from touring China following her 2016 meeting with the Dalai Lama, an icon of Tibetan independence. It annoyed Chinese officials who consider him a figurehead of Tibetan separatism.

In the censored scene, Lady Gaga and Lisa Kudrow performed "Smelly Cat" with a crew of backup singers.

Justin Bieber is banned from performing in China because of bad behavior. He was featured on the show dressed as Spudnik - a character Ross cosplayed during a Halloween party.

In 2014, Bieber sparked controversy by visiting Tokyo’s Yasukuni Shrine. This shrine honors convicted war criminals and is seen by China and Korea as revisionism and an unapologetic approach to Japanese crimes during World War II.

LGBTQ+ references, as well as random references to urine, were also censored from the Chinese platforms.