Josh Gad Shar Regrets About Gay LeFou 'Bety and the Beast' - Variety

Contents:

• PIXAR’S ONWARD FALLY GETS THE “EXCLIVELY GAY MOMENT” RIGHT
• 'BETY AND THE BEAST'S 'GAY MOMENT' MAY HAVE BEEN MUCH ADO ABOUT NOTHG
• WHY DISNEY+'S HOWARD IS THE STUD'S FIRST TE "EXCLIVELY GAY MOMENT"
• AN EXCLIVELY GAY BREAKDOWN OF BETY AND THE BEAST’S WOULD-BE QUEER MOMENT
• ‘BETY AND THE BEAST’ DIRECTOR TALKS OF ‘EXCLIVELY GAY’ MOMENT
• WHY DISNEY'S "EXCLIVELY GAY MOMENT" DON'T DELIVER AT ALL
• “EXCLIVELY GAY MOMENT” CREAT NTROVERSY
• “BETY AND THE BEAST” WILL FEATURE DISNEY’S FIRST-EVER “EXCLIVELY GAY MOMENT”
• BETY AND THE BEAST DIRECTOR SAYS 'EXCLIVELY GAY MOMENT' WAS 'OVERBLOWN'
• NEW ‘BETY AND THE BEAST’ TO FEATURE DISNEY’S FIRST ‘EXCLIVELY GAY MOMENT’ FILM
• JOSH GAD SHAR REGRET OVER GAY LEFOU ‘BETY AND THE BEAST’: ‘WE DIDN’T GO FAR ENOUGH’
• ‘BETY AND THE BEAST’: JOSH GAD PLAYS DISNEY’S FIRST-EVER GAY CHARACTER
• THE “EXCLIVELY GAY” CHARACTER THE BETY AND THE BEAST REMAKE IS NOT AS REVOLUTNARY AS DISNEY THKS IT IS
• ‘BETY AND THE BEAST’ TO HAVE DISNEY’S FIRST-EVER ‘EXCLIVELY GAY MOMENT’
• THE ‘EXCLIVELY GAY MOMENT’ ‘BETY AND THE BEAST’ PROV THE DANGER OF OVERHYPE
• LEFOU'S GAY MOMENT "BETY AND THE BEAST" IS A MAJOR LETDOWN
• LEFOU EMBRAC LE FEY: DISNEY GO GAY IN ‘BETY AND THE BEAST’
• JAGUARS ACH KEV MAXEN OUT AS GAY HISTORIC ANNOUNCEMENT
• DISNEY TO FEATURE S FIRST GAY STORYLE ‘BETY AND THE BEAST’ REMAKE
• DISNEY’S 'EXCLIVELY GAY MOMENT' IS LONG OVERDUE

PIXAR’S ONWARD FALLY GETS THE “EXCLIVELY GAY MOMENT” RIGHT

From the “exclively gay moment” the live-actn Bety and the Beast to a kiss between two mor female characters last year’s The Rise of Skywalker, each baby step has been preced by a flotilla of verage proclaimg the advance—and each has been followed by the evable sense of nfn and betrayal when viewers see the movie and realize, That’s ? The makers of Star Trek Beyond were eager to make sure you knew that s versn of Sulu was gay, even though they eded out the only physil sign of his affectns.

Or would Lawrence have been trotted out for a seri of fensive terviews explag that her character really was gay, but movi are plited and you have to serve the story—and who knows, maybe they’ll clu the leted scen. It’s important not to make too much of Onward’s exclively gay moment—or even to make too much of the movie not makg too much of . After all, children’s animated movi, pecially those om gay filmmakers—cludg ParaNorman and the How to Tra Your Dragon films—have been quietly cludg moments like this for years, whout anyone pattg themselv on the back.

'BETY AND THE BEAST'S 'GAY MOMENT' MAY HAVE BEEN MUCH ADO ABOUT NOTHG

They're not talkg about the overall film, which is gettg great reviews (three out of four stars om USA TODAY) and breakg box office rerds wh a $170 ln but, the hight ever for March and the seventh-hight of all unrwhelmed reactn has been to the so-lled "exclively gay moment" the film, which has ed ternatnal ntroversy sce director Bill Condon first mentned an terview wh Attu the terview, Condon said the character LeFou (Josh Gad) would be portrayed as gay. The "gay moment" that Condon was referrg to is a blk-and-you'll-miss- shot the film's fal sends. "If nobody had said that #LeFou had a 'gay moment'  #BetyAndTheBeast, I really don't thk would've even been a thg, " wrote one Twter er.

WHY DISNEY+'S HOWARD IS THE STUD'S FIRST TE "EXCLIVELY GAY MOMENT"

"Watched the new #BetyAndTheBeast movie last night, hontly don't unrstand what the outrage (about) there beg a gay character was (about), " wrote another. "Bt part of my day was when half the theater clapped and cheered when the gay uple me on screen #BetyAndTheBeast, " reported one dience who supported the film appld how much money was able rack spe reported "boytts.

AN EXCLIVELY GAY BREAKDOWN OF BETY AND THE BEAST’S WOULD-BE QUEER MOMENT

"Though the moment was well-received or unrwhelmg to many dience members, there were some the LGBT muny who thought the reprentatn of a gay character did not go far enough. Also LeFou is not gay enough, " one Twter er sentiment was shared by some LGBT crics and wrers.

"Disney n pat self on s back all wants for turng a villao buffoon that was d as gay the origal film to a morally ambiguo buffoon who is more obvly gay, nfis a teapot, and tri out dancg wh a man, " wrote Vulture. "Although I adored the movie overall, part of my tratn wh is that I had hoped for more out of Condon’s 'exclively gay moment, '" The Huffgton Post explaed. Disney's first steps to LGBTQ+ clivy – LeFou's "exclively gay moment" 2017's Bety and the Beast and Star Wars: The Rise of Skywalker's gay kiss – were a ltle Bambi on ice.

That is to say,, pany boss Bob Chapek promised "creased mment" to LGBTQ+ reprentatn back March and new Disney+ documentary Howard marks a genue turng pot as celebrat Disney's greatt-ever gay talent – one of the chief archects of the Disney Renaissance, Howard Ashman. )We now know Ashman's mob song 'Kill the Beast' is a metaphor for homophobia and HIV and AIDS stigma ("we don't like what we don't unrstand").

‘BETY AND THE BEAST’ DIRECTOR TALKS OF ‘EXCLIVELY GAY’ MOMENT

We nvened two Slate wrers to dissect Bety and the Beast’s ballyhooed “exclively gay” moment and the ensug fallout.

WHY DISNEY'S "EXCLIVELY GAY MOMENT" DON'T DELIVER AT ALL

Jefey Bloomer: Sorry, David, but I need to lock you my stle to discs a matter that Bill Condon, Josh Gad, and pecially Disney wish we would jt fet: the “exclively gay” moment the new Bety and the Beast.

The one where LeFou, the bumblg sikick to beloved villa Gaston, be the supposed first gay character a Disney movie. Bloomer: A few weeks ago, Condon ma prumably advertent headl around the world by suggtg to Attu, a Brish gay magaze, that LeFou would be love wh Gaston the new movie.

“EXCLIVELY GAY MOMENT” CREAT NTROVERSY

But then there’s the flipsi: LeFou is the ic relief for much of his screen time, and feels as if Condon treats his gayns as a punchle.

Bloomer: Right: It’s hard to separate buffoon LeFou om gay LeFou, and the movie often nflat the two. My dience lghed awkwardly at each eyebrow flutter and hip shake, as if to say: We get , he’s gay.

It’ll be a while before a young prce march to a hnted stle searchg for the boy he’ll love one day, but I’m not bothered by how Bety and the Beast took up s particular gay agenda.

“BETY AND THE BEAST” WILL FEATURE DISNEY’S FIRST-EVER “EXCLIVELY GAY MOMENT”

Put another way: Given the very standard, slightly patronizg gay readg of LeFou (so many longg glanc! In an era when many blockbters have real, breathg (if barely out) gay characters—Inpennce Day 2 and Star Trek Beyond, for recent exampl—Condon’s self-ngratulatn the gay prs seems ridiculo.

BETY AND THE BEAST DIRECTOR SAYS 'EXCLIVELY GAY MOMENT' WAS 'OVERBLOWN'

But as you smartly poted out, the movie self is actually richer s gay ntent than I’d expected. It do some smart thgs and tak some signifint stris, so ’s puzzlg that Condon chose to sgle out a scene that’s neher mendably nor “exclively” gay. Bloomer: On that note, Le Evans, who plays Gaston, has said he thks the gay read of LeFou and Gatson’s dynamic is wrong altogether.

NEW ‘BETY AND THE BEAST’ TO FEATURE DISNEY’S FIRST ‘EXCLIVELY GAY MOMENT’ FILM

Which is awkward for an entirely different reason: In 2011, the gay media had some … thoughts when Evans’ publicists appeared to force him back to the closet after he nfirmed he was gay a 2002 Advote terview. Evans retreated right around the time he seemed poised to bee an (openly gay) actn star movi like The Immortals and Fast & Fur 6.

It’s funny: This all started bee Condon dared to highlight the movie as relatively gay-iendly for Disney, which is probably te. ) Malaysia is a ty film market, but 20th Century Fox apparently removed a chaste gay embrace om Inpennce Day 2 to appease the untry last summer.

JOSH GAD SHAR REGRET OVER GAY LEFOU ‘BETY AND THE BEAST’: ‘WE DIDN’T GO FAR ENOUGH’

But he also helped spark eper discsns around cln—not jt about the prence of an explicly gay character a blockbter release but about what our expectatns n and should be 2017. And so seems to have tiptoed toward open homosexualy s new live-actn versn of “Bety and the Beast.

”Bill Condon, who directed the film, and is openly gay, told the Brish magaze Attu that the manservant LeFou, played by Josh Gad, has “a nice, exclively gay moment” the movie, which has s premiere here on Thursday and arriv theaters the Uned Stat on March Condon ntued: “LeFou is somebody who on one day wants to be Gaston and on another day wants to kiss Gaston.

” The Daily Dot, whout havg seen the movie, stomped s foot, sayg that a gay LeFou was “hardly a high pot for posive L. LeFou sure seemed to have a csh on Gaston Disney’s 1991 animated versn of “Bety and the Beast, ” ntug a tradn of Disney sikicks that seem to be gay whout statg . A versn of this article appears prt on, Sectn C, Page 3 of the New York edn wh the headle: ‘Bety and the Beast’ to Have ‘Gay Moment’.

‘BETY AND THE BEAST’: JOSH GAD PLAYS DISNEY’S FIRST-EVER GAY CHARACTER

A few weeks ago, news broke that the new live-actn Bety and the Beast would feature s first openly gay character. " While the announcement led to evable backlash om some, others lled to qutn this claim that LeFou would be Disney's "first" openly gay character.

In fact, not only is LeFou cidly not an openly gay Disney character, but the "exclively gay moment" hardly earns that we dive to the mutiae of the problem, let me expla how this "exclively gay moment" go down. " Which seems like a non filmmakers felt the need to troduce a send gay character, but who? Stanley trots gleefully down the stairs and exs the when do our "exclively gay moment" happen?

In realy, an dividual's homosexualy is not nfirmed unls they explicly mentn their romantic attractn to dividuals of the same genr. Are they even attracted to each other, or are they jt shoved together bee they're both gay? Why uldn't LeFou and Stanley peck on the lips or say somethg unniably gay their "exclively gay moment" together?

THE “EXCLIVELY GAY” CHARACTER THE BETY AND THE BEAST REMAKE IS NOT AS REVOLUTNARY AS DISNEY THKS IT IS

In fact, as the ter has duly noted, there are plenty of implicly gay characters Disney history. Judgg by how groundbreakg they thought this whole oral would be, though, we're que far om a Disney character who exclaims, "I'm gay! The live-actn versn of “Bety and the Beast” has been out for ls than a week, but even before h the silver screen garnered worldwi praise and cricism for one thg: Disney’s cisn to make LeFou nonilly gay.

‘BETY AND THE BEAST’ TO HAVE DISNEY’S FIRST-EVER ‘EXCLIVELY GAY MOMENT’

The cisn to give a si character the story an “exclively gay moment” has already ed the film to be banned om at least one Alabama drive- theater and ma Disney pull all screengs om Malaysia entirely when the pany found out that censors had cut the moment om the versn that would be showg the untry. Activists and actors like Sir Ian McKellan, a gay man himself, have spoken out agast the censors and crics. “People who don’t like the ia of gay characters appearg fairy stori should thk what they would thk if they were gay themselv and why they should be exclud, ” McKellan said at the film’s New York premiere.

The problem wh havg potentially not-straight characters’ sexuali only hted at subtextually is that people who don’t want, say, animated Lefou to be gay don’t have to see him that way, and th productn pani n ny his inty to dodge ntroversy by tellg fans of subtextually queer Lefou “you’re readg too much to . Consir the state of unrreprentatn of explicly queer characters and the tradn of queer-dg though, would have been nice for a character who is clearly a protagonist to have gotten the first “exclively gay moment” a Disney film.

THE ‘EXCLIVELY GAY MOMENT’ ‘BETY AND THE BEAST’ PROV THE DANGER OF OVERHYPE

When to theaters March 17th, Disney’s live-actn Bety and the Beast will clu a historic gay moment for the stud.

LEFOU'S GAY MOMENT "BETY AND THE BEAST" IS A MAJOR LETDOWN

Speakg to Attu, director Bill Condon there will be what he’s llg an “exclively gay moment” for LeFou’s character. Attu go so far to say the film, which “might seem like the ultimate celebratn of heterosexual love” is “actually harborg a treasure trove of gay secrets. LeFou, played by Amerin actor Josh Gay, is effectively the sikick of the film’s primary villa Gaston (Le Evans), and a small but important subplot revolv around his sexualy.

LEFOU EMBRAC LE FEY: DISNEY GO GAY IN ‘BETY AND THE BEAST’

Bety and the Beast director says 'exclively gay moment' was 'overblown' Bill Condon is walkg back ments he ma over LeFou's g out. The director first announced Josh Gad’s LeFou would e out of the closet a recent issue of Attu magaze, givg Disney s first openly gay character. At the time, he referred to as “an exclively gay moment, ” but has sce downplayed his past remarks durg an terview wh ScreenCsh.

JAGUARS ACH KEV MAXEN OUT AS GAY HISTORIC ANNOUNCEMENT

” BBC further reports the film may not screen Rsia, given the untry’s law that bans what Rsian officials em “gay propaganda” to mors.

DISNEY TO FEATURE S FIRST GAY STORYLE ‘BETY AND THE BEAST’ REMAKE

Gad remarked to USA Today on the film’s premiere, “There was nothg the script that said ‘LeFou is gay. Josh Gad recently told The Inpennt that he has some regrets over how Disney’s 2017 live actn “Bety and the Beast” remake handled makg his character a gay man. The movie’s director, Bill Condon, announced USA Today ahead of the film’s release that his “Bety and the Beast” would troduce Disney’s first openly gay character.

Condon said Gad’s LeFou had “an exclively gay moment” the movie, but all that turned out to be was a blk-and-you’ll-miss- shot of LeFou dancg wh a man.

’ My regret what happened is that beme ‘Disney’s first explicly gay moment’ and was never tend to be that. It was never tend to be a moment that we should ld ourselv for, bee ankly, I don’t thk we did jtice to what a real gay character a Disney film should be. Once the film opened theaters, Condon and Gad were wily cricized for pattg themselv on the back when the movie ntaed virtually no gay moment whatsoever.

DISNEY’S 'EXCLIVELY GAY MOMENT' IS LONG OVERDUE

Gad told USA Today at the film’s 2017 premiere that while the script did not nfirm LeFou is gay, he was “honored” to have the chance to epen the character the live-actn versn.

The upg live-actn Bety and the Beast remake will be the first Disney movie to feature an openly gay character, acrdg to director Bill Condon—and no, ’s not Lumière or Cogsworth. Condon revealed an terview wh Attu that Josh Gad’s characer, LeFou (the sikick to villao Gaston), will have what he lls an “exclively gay moment” the film. Attu’s own edor--chief, Matt Ca, seemed to offer more specifics about what, exactly, nstut an “exclively gay moment, ” while praisg the news.

“By reprentg same-sex attractn this short but explicly gay scene, the stud is sendg out a msage that this is normal and natural. Even settg asi the obv ntradictns at work here—the scene will be explicly gay but also “subtle, ” somehow—this is not que the groundbreakg, rah-rah, LGBTQ-clive moment Disney seems to believe is. And if the stud believ gay dienc n’t intify wh a character unls that character is explicly queer, they’ve missed the memo, bee, as Akash Nilas poted out a 2014 piece the Atlantic, between g-out anthems like “Let It Go, ” outsir villas who have been rejected by society, and protagonists who fd solace found fai, Disney has been subtly but surely promotg the “gay agenda” for years.