Annette Bening and some other industry people are in Iran right now doing seminars with Iran’s Cinema Association, but Iran’s “art and cinema advisor” is demanding that Iranian filmmakers refuse to meet with the Americans until they apologize.  Because of the negative portrayal of Iranians in American films, you see.

“In my viewpoint, it is a failure to have an official meeting with one who is insulting,” said Javad Shamaqdari, the art and cinema adviser to President Mahmoud Ahmadinejad.
The film “300″ angered many Iranians for the way Persians are depicted as decadent, sexually flamboyant and evil in contrast to the noble Greeks. Iranians also criticized “The Wrestler” starring Mickey Rourke as a rundown professional wrestler who is preparing for a rematch with his old nemesis, “The Ayatollah.” [Who, by the way, is based on the Iron Sheik, who is real, Persian, and probably would've been a lot more offensive] During a fight scene, “The Ayatollah” tries to choke Rourke with an Iranian flag before Rourke pulls the flagpole away, breaks it and throws it into the cheering crowd. [Yahoo]

Minutes later, someone turned to Shamaqdari and asked, “Wait, how do you know these things?  Have you seen these decadent American films?”  “Well, no… I mean, yes I have, but because–”  And they chopped his head off with a f-cking axe.