German director Wim Wenders has withdrawn his 1975 film Wrong Move from circulation due to a scene featuring a 13-year-old actor topless. The decision follows months of public pressure and criticism after actor Nastassja Kinski revealed she had spent 15 years unsuccessfully trying to get Wenders to change the film.
Wenders Issues Apology and Withdraws Film
In a statement released on Wednesday, Wenders confirmed that streaming, TV, and distribution partners have been instructed to no longer make the film publicly accessible. The non-profit Wim Wenders Foundation, which owns the film, will withdraw it from all current channels of distribution.
Wenders, now 80, said: 'As the only person responsible at the time for Wrong Move who is still here, I recognise that Nastassja Kinski should have been better protected back then. For that, I apologise to you, Nastassja, unreservedly, no ifs or buts.'
Kinski's Long Campaign
Nastassja Kinski, now 65, told Süddeutsche Zeitung last month that she had spent 15 years trying to get Wenders to change the film. She made her acting debut in Wrong Move, playing a mute teenage acrobat. 'That was my first film, he was my first director and he didn't protect me,' she said. 'Even though I didn't know much aged 13, I knew that that wasn't okay.'
Kinski, daughter of the late actor Klaus Kinski, went on to work with Wenders again in 1984's Paris, Texas and starred in more than 60 films in Europe and the US.
Wenders' Initial Comments Spark Backlash
Speaking at the German film awards ceremony last Friday, Wenders had said that while he would not shoot a scene in the same way today, Wrong Move was also a product of its age, and editing it retrospectively would require a broader discussion within the film industry. His comments sparked criticism across German media, with fellow film-maker and Babylon Berlin actor Julius Feldmeier writing in an open letter to Wenders that 'it's your responsibility alone to set things right.'
Wenders, one of the most influential German directors of the postwar period, is known for award-winning films including Wings of Desire, Paris, Texas, Buena Vista Social Club, and Perfect Days.
Kinski's Previous Campaigns
Kinski has previously successfully campaigned against a TV film by Das Boot director Wolfgang Petersen, in which she was shown naked aged 15. Her lawyer told news magazine Der Spiegel that they had come to an agreement over the film's distribution with broadcaster NDR.
