Leprosy groups up in arms over leper joke in Aardman Animations' The Pirates
Once more bowing to pressure from the powerful leprosy lobby, Aardman Animations has been forced to change a scene in its newest stop-motion animated adventure The Pirates! Band Of Misfits, after receiving complaints from groups like Lepra Health In Action and the International Federation of Anti-Leprosy Associations. The scene, which holds a prominent place in the trailer, shows the pirate captain (voiced by Hugh Grant) storming a ship and demanding gold, only to be informed that it’s a leper boat—followed immediately by a crew member’s arm falling off. It’s a quick, pointedly exaggerated gag that lasts barely more than a few seconds, but leprosy advocates believe it could increase worldwide discrimination against sufferers of the disease, as Pirates audiences would then begin to associate the word “leper” with a negative connotation.