No, Barbie's map doesn't include Greater Albania | Fact check

Gabrielle Settles, USA TODAY
·2 min read
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The claim: Barbie movie banned in Serbia over 'Greater Albania' map

A July 7 Instagram post (direct link, archived link) shows what appears to be an image from the movie "Barbie" alongside a map of Eastern Europe that shows Albania expanding into Kosovo and parts of Montenegro, North Macedonia, Greece and Serbia.

"Barbie movie banned in Serbia over controversial 'Greater Albania' map," reads text included in the post.

The post was liked more than 85,000 times.

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Our rating: False

No map showing Greater Albania appeared in the Barbie film. The Instagram post’s photo is altered and replaces the real map in the movie. Serbia did not ban the film.

Serbia and other countries brought in record earnings opening weekend

"Barbie" had record earnings around the world during its July 21 opening weekend, Forbes reported, including in Serbia. It was among the countries in which the movie had the biggest opening weekend of 2023, according to the outlet.

The Instagram post, made weeks before the movie was released, appears to be an altered image from the movie's trailer.

The map in the Instagram post differs significantly from the one in the trailer, which is a colorful and inaccurate "world map." It does not show Albania or Greater Albania.

Still, Barbie’s map did stir up controversy in another country. Vietnam banned the film because the map shows a nine-dash line next to Asia in the South China Sea, which has been used by Beijing to extend its territories into waters already claimed by Vietnam and other countries.

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Concept of Greater Albania comes from nationalist ideals

Greater Albania refers to an Albania nationalist idea that emerged in the 19th century to create a country for ethnic Albanians, including those living in Kosovo and regions of other countries such as Serbia, North Macedonia, Greece and Montenegro, according to BBC News.

Gazmend Kapllani, the director of the DePaul Albanian Studies Program at DePaul University, told USA TODAY it’s unlikely that Greater Albania would ever come about.

“Indicative of this is the fact that no (ethnic Albanian) political party in Albania, Kosovo, North Macedonia and Montenegro supports such a vague nationalistic project,” said Kapllani.

USA TODAY reached out to the user who shared the post for comment but did not immediately receive a response.

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This article originally appeared on USA TODAY: No, Barbie movie was not banned in Serbia | Fact check