Beauty and the Beast will be screened in Malaysia without cuts, although censors have given the film a 13-plus age rating due to the film containing a “gay moment”.

The Film Censorship Board of Malaysia had previously said the Disney movie would only be approved for release if four minutes of material were removed. The studio refused to make the cuts and appealed the board’s decision.

Now the censors have apparently relented. “We are pleased to announce that Disney’s Beauty and the Beast has now been approved to be released in Malaysia with no cuts, with a P13 rating,” the studio said in a statement. The rating prohibits children under the age of 13 from seeing the film will unless accompanied by an adult.

Earlier, the censorship board chairman had suggested that the film’s director, Bill Condon, had forced the board’s hand. “Maybe if Condon had not mentioned the gay element people wouldn’t be so curious, and we could let it go with a potentially minor cut,” Datuk Abdul Halim Abdul Hamid told Malaysia’s New Straits Times.

“Malaysia does not recognise the LGBT ideology,” he added, “so we have to be extra-cautious in our work. We have our responsibilities to the country, the people and our constitution. If we let these scenes pass, people will wonder if Malaysia recognises LGBT.”

The country has strict laws against homosexual behaviour, and films are only permitted to feature gay characters if they are portrayed in a negative light or show repentance for their sexuality.

The censors’ decision to award a P13 rating follows that of Russia, who gave the film a 16+ certificate. The Russian ruling prevents anyone under the age of 16 from seeing the film, whether or not they are accompanied by an adult.

Beauty and the Beast broke global box-office records in its opening weekend, becoming the highest-grossing PG film in the US, and the highest-grossing opening for a musical film in the UK. It will open in Malaysia on 30 March.