Deaf Star Wars Fan Was Left "Disappointed And Insulted" After Going To A Special Screening Of The New Film - When Staff Didn't Turn On The Subtitles
A deaf Star Wars fan was left “disappointed and insulted” after going to a special screening of the new film – when staff didn’t turn on the subtitles.
Oscar Davies, 23, who has been hearing impaired since he was a toddler, travelled to a Vue Cinema branch only to find out the film was not subtitled as originally advertised.
The Christmas Eve screening of Rise of the Skywalker carried on while Oscar alerted staff to the error.
He said staff refused to give an explanation, resolution or apology, and the Vue manager only offered two complimentary tickets.
Oscar said he was “disappointed and insulted” by the offer.
He said: “I went home and just sat in front of the TV for two hours, it was depressing.
“When the pain has died down I might consider going back to Vue but that won’t be any time soon.”
Oscar’s sister Lucia, 28, complained to Vue but said the response was “poor and insensitive”.
Lucia added: “My brother doesn’t like to complain, he just puts a brave face on and continues.
“It is extremely difficult for someone who is deaf to join in on activities that primarily involve ones hearing and the fact that he was then left extremely upset and hard done by following this experience is unacceptable.”
A similar incident happened after Bicester Vue Cinema also failed to turn-on subtitles at a deaf-accessible showing.
National Deaf Children’s Society research released in 2019 reveals over 75 per cent of UK chains failed to put on a single subtitled screening of kids’ films in their opening weeks last summer.
Oscar said the new Star Wars film, also categorised as a children’s film, did not have a single deaf-accessible screening at the Oxford branch from December 19 to the end of the year.
He finally watched the last in the new trilogy when he went to a New Year’s Eve screening at the Curzon at 11am.
A Vue Cinema spokesperson claimed the chain screens two subtitled films per week, however, the Oxford branch only listed one – on Sunday at 11.50am – from January 10 until January 16.
Addressing Oscar’s complaint, the spokesperson added: “Regrettably, on this occasion, the subtitle track was not available as expected and we would like to apologise again to the customer for the disappointment caused.”