"Bety and the Beast" director nfirms openly gay character the live-actn remake - CBS News

Contents:

• "BETY AND THE BEAST" DIRECTOR NFIRMS OPENLY GAY CHARACTER THE LIVE-ACTN REMAKE
• LEFOU EMBRAC LE FEY: DISNEY GO GAY IN ‘BETY AND THE BEAST’
• 'BETY AND THE BEAST'S 'GAY MOMENT' MAY HAVE BEEN MUCH ADO ABOUT NOTHG
• 'BETY AND THE BEAST' FEATUR DISNEY'S FIRST GAY CHARACTER
• JOSH GAD SAYS HE DON'T THK 'BETY AND THE BEAST' DID 'JTICE TO WHAT A REAL GAY CHARACTER A DISNEY FILM SHOULD BE'
• JOSH GAD SHAR REGRET OVER GAY LEFOU ‘BETY AND THE BEAST’: ‘WE DIDN’T GO FAR ENOUGH’
• BETY AND THE BEAST “DIDN’T GO FAR ENOUGH” WH GAY LEFOU, SAYS JOSH GAD “I DON’T THK WE DID JTICE TO WHAT A REAL GAY CHARACTER A DISNEY FILM SHOULD BE,” GAD SAID A RECENT TERVIEW.BY SAVANNAH WALSHMARCH 1, 2022FROM SHUTTERSTOCK.SAVE THIS STORYSAVESAVE THIS STORYSAVEIT’S BEEN NEARLY FIVE YEARS SCE DISNEY’S LIVE-ACTN BETY AND THE BEAST MA HEADL FOR AN “EXCLIVELY GAY MOMENT” VOLVG LEFOU (PLAYED BY JOSH GAD), THE DIM-WTED SIKICK TO THE VILLAO GASTON (LE EVANS). THAT SCENE, TEASED BY DIRECTOR BILL CONDON DURG THE FILM’S PRS TOUR, WOUND UP BEG MERELY A BRIEF SHOT OF LEFOU DANCG WH ANOTHER MAN JT BEFORE THE CREDS ROLLED. GAD IS NOW REMORSEFUL ABOUT HIS CHARACTER’S POSNG AS DISNEY’S FIRST TE LGBTQ+ REPRENTATN.“WE DIDN’T GO FAR ENOUGH TO WARRANT ACLAS,” HE RECENTLY TOLD THE INPENNT. “WE DIDN’T GO FAR ENOUGH TO SAY, ‘LOOK HOW BRAVE WE ARE.’ 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.”AT THE TIME OF BETY AND THE BEAST’S RELEASE, THE IMPLITN THAT A BELOVED ANIMATED CHARACTER WOULD BE QUEER ED NTROVERSY. AN ALABAMA THEATER REFED TO SCREEN THE FILM, MALAYSIA BALKED AT SCREENG AN UNCENSORED VERSN OF , AND RSIA APPROVED THE FILM FOR SCREENG BUT WH AN AGE RATG OF 16 AND ABOVE. AMIDST THE FALLOUT, CONDON REVISED HIS EARLIER MENTS, LLG VERAGE OF THE SCENE “OVERBLOWN.” MEANWHILE, GAD TOLD USA TODAY AT THE FILM’S PREMIERE THAT THE SCRIPT DID NOT EXPLICLY DISCLOSE LEFOU’S SEXUALY AS GAY. “THAT WAS NOT LEFOU,” GAD NTUED HIS REMARKS TO THE INPENNT. “IF WE’RE GOG TO PAT OURSELV ON THE BACK, THEN DAMN , WE SHOULD HAVE GONE FURTHER WH THAT. EVERYBODY SERV AN OPPORTUNY TO SEE THEMSELV ON SCREEN, AND I DON’T THK WE’VE DONE ENOUGH—AND I CERTALY HAVEN’T DONE ENOUGH TO DO THAT.”GAD WAS SET TO REPRISE HIS ROLE AS LEFOU A PREQUEL SERI FOR DISNEY+, WHICH WOULD HAVE RNED WH EVANS’S GASTON. HOWEVER, DISNEY POSTPONED THE PROJECT EARLIER THIS YEAR, DUE TO CREATIVE LAYS. “WE TRIED TO MAKE ALL WORK BUT UNR THE GUN WASN’T MEANT TO BE…FOR NOW,” GAD, WHO WAS ALSO A SHOWNNER ON THE SERI, TWEETED. “THE CHARACTERS AND THIS STORY WILL LIVE ON, BUT SOMETIM THE BT TENTNS & REALY LLI & NOTHG N BE DONE.”MORE GREAT STORI FROM VANY FAIR— JERRY LEWIS’S COSTARS SPEAK OUT: “HE GRABBED ME. HE BEGAN TO FONDLE ME. I WAS DUMBSTCK”— INSI CHARLIZE THERON AND TOM HARDY’S MAD MAX WAR— INVENTG ANNA IS A “DANGERO” DISTORTN, SAYS RACHEL WILLIAMS— HOW THE GUN ALEC BALDW’S HANDS TURNED THE RT SET DEADLY— LOVE IS BLD SEASON TWO IS PEAK RED FLAG TELEVISN— PACHKO FIRST LOOK: AN EPIC TALE, AND A HISTORY-MAKG SHOW— VANY FAIR’S HOLLYWOOD ISSUE 2022: SEE THE FULL PORTFOL FEATURG NILE KIDMAN, KRISTEN STEWART, AND MORE— THE UGLY TTH OF HOW MOVIE SR ARE MA— KIRSTEN DUNST ON HER FIRST OSR NOMATN FOR THE POWER OF THE DOG— FROM THE ARCHIVE: WH FRIENDS LIKE THE— SIGN UP FOR THE “HWD DAILY” NEWSLETTER FOR MT-READ DTRY AND AWARDS VERAGE—PL A SPECIAL WEEKLY EDN OF “AWARDS INSIR.”MOST POPULARVANY FAIR’S “IT’S RAG TEENS” COVER AT 20: WHERE ARE THEY NOW?BY SAVANNAH WALSHRED, WHE & ROYAL BLUE MAY BE “THE MOST EXPENSIVE B OF FAN FICTN EVER”BY SAVANNAH WALSHTHE CAST OF OPPENHEIMER AND THE REAL PEOPLE THEY PLAYBY HILLARY BISSAVANNAH WALSH
• WHY ‘BETY AND THE BEAST’S GAY CHARACTER IS NOT AS GROUNDBREAKG AS DISNEY BELIEV
• ALL THE CHARACTERS 'BETY AND THE BEAST' WHO WERE PROBABLY GAY ALL ALONG
• 17 GAY AND LGBTQ DISNEY CHARACTERS – OM D TO NON TO TASTROPHE
• ‘BETY AND THE BEAST’: JOSH GAD PLAYS DISNEY’S FIRST-EVER GAY CHARACTER
• THE TOUCHG TRIBUTE BEHD DISNEY’S FIRST OPENLY GAY CHARACTER

"BETY AND THE BEAST" DIRECTOR NFIRMS OPENLY GAY CHARACTER THE LIVE-ACTN REMAKE

The live-actn “Bety and the Beast” remake is set to make history by featurg Disney’s first-ever “exclively gay moment, ” director Bill Condon Emma Watson sg “Belle” om “Bety and the Beast”In the new film, Josh Gad’s character LeFou -- a syphantic henchman to the nceed Gaston, played by Le Evans -- will be prented a b differently om the 1991 animated versn. But is a nice, exclively gay moment a Disney movie. Few Disney characters are explicly clared to be gay by the stud, but viewers have picked up on "gay dg.

Few Disney characters are explicly clared to be gay by the stud or s filmmakers, but viewers have picked up on "gay dg, " characters exhibg tras rrpondg wh LGBTQ. Aud Bool on the blog Prezi scrib the term: "Cod gay is when a gay stereotype, 'gay behavrs' or 'mp' are ed to imply that a character is homosexual while never explicly statg that they are.

In other s, viewers have cricized the stud for dg s villas as beg gay, nflatg gayns wh evil or gog so over the top as to be sultgly stereotypil, pigeon-holg an entire muny.

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

Here, CBR looks at 15 characters Disney and Pixar movi who are nfirmed as gay, or are believed to be by the fan muny.

" Aga, this is an example of potential gay dg, where masculy is seen as beg rerved for straight men, but not those wh the queer muny, exemplified this se by Sr. Ashman shared roots Baltimore's theater scene and gay scen wh Dive, and Ashman directed actrs Pat Carroll Ursula's voice, phrasgs and personaly.

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

Governor Ratcliffe om Pohontas (1995) is also tagged as a d gay villa Monique Jon' "Jt Add Color" blog. Timon is voiced by Nathan Lane, who is openly gay, and Pumbaa by Ernie Sabella. In an article about the upg Ln Kg live-actn remake, Jezebel refers to Timon and Pumbaa as gay lovers and "their fiercely lovg and judgment-ee romance, " marked by the song "Hakuna Matata.

Lane said, "Now that gay rights have e so far, this versn Timon n fally marry Pumbaa and live openly the Serengeti.

But for the 2017 live-actn remake, LeFou was nceived as exprsly gay and played that way by actor Josh Gad.

'BETY AND THE BEAST' FEATUR DISNEY'S FIRST GAY CHARACTER

Clearg up any doubt about their relatnship, Zootopia -director Jared Bh tweeted, "They are a gay married uple. But they don't yell at each other bee they're gay, they yell bee they're real. The hoopla over the "exclively gay moment" the live-actn versn of Bety and the Beast (2017) -- LeFou dancg wh a man while sgg Gaston's prais -- spurred several piec potg out there was another gay uple the film.

That Ken, "is picted as a closeted gay fashnista, wh a fondns for wrhg sparkly purple k wh curly-Q flourish. Pairg homophobia wh misogyny, the jok about Ken suggt that the worst thgs a boy n be are eher a girl or a homosexual.

JOSH GAD SAYS HE DON'T THK 'BETY AND THE BEAST' DID 'JTICE TO WHAT A REAL GAY CHARACTER A DISNEY FILM SHOULD BE'

In the magaze Ltle Whe Li, Henry Bevan wr, "If Jam Woods' Has wasn't by takg over the world, he'd be the gay bt iend a romantic edy. The lead animator on Jafar was Andreas Deja, who is openly gay, and has worked on Hercul, Lilo and Stch, Gaston Bety and the Beast and Sr The Ln Kg.

In Tker Bell and Evil Queens: The Walt Disney Company om the Insi Out, thor Sean Griff not that Deja "adms to nceivg of the [Jafar] character as a gay man 'to give him his theatril qualy, his elegance. In Entertament Weekly, Adam Markovz asks, "Could Merida be gay?

Her love of unprcs-like hobbi, cludg archery and rock-climbg, is sure to strike a chord wh gay viewers who felt siarly 'not like the other kids' growg up. Not exactly the image wh which gay men like to be associated. There is a pattern wh all of the d “gay” characters, all of whom uld be scribed ntemporary terms as genr non-nformg: They’re all villas.

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

In an terview wh Bra’s Attu Magaze, Condon revealed that he will make his mark on the Disney legacy by allowg years of subtext to fally e to the surface, prentg the first “nice, exclively gay moment a Disney movie, ” the director said. READ MORE: Cate Blanchett Remds You Why She’s A Gay In Wh Powerhoe Drag Bar Lip Sync — Watch. Condon, who unts Sir Ian McKellen as a good iend, is openly gay.

Even if the moment wreaks of tokenism, is still a historic tone for Disney to regnize a gay character out loud.

BETY AND THE BEAST “DIDN’T GO FAR ENOUGH” WH GAY LEFOU, SAYS JOSH GAD “I DON’T THK WE DID JTICE TO WHAT A REAL GAY CHARACTER A DISNEY FILM SHOULD BE,” GAD SAID A RECENT TERVIEW.BY SAVANNAH WALSHMARCH 1, 2022FROM SHUTTERSTOCK.SAVE THIS STORYSAVESAVE THIS STORYSAVEIT’S BEEN NEARLY FIVE YEARS SCE DISNEY’S LIVE-ACTN BETY AND THE BEAST MA HEADL FOR AN “EXCLIVELY GAY MOMENT” VOLVG LEFOU (PLAYED BY JOSH GAD), THE DIM-WTED SIKICK TO THE VILLAO GASTON (LE EVANS). THAT SCENE, TEASED BY DIRECTOR BILL CONDON DURG THE FILM’S PRS TOUR, WOUND UP BEG MERELY A BRIEF SHOT OF LEFOU DANCG WH ANOTHER MAN JT BEFORE THE CREDS ROLLED. GAD IS NOW REMORSEFUL ABOUT HIS CHARACTER’S POSNG AS DISNEY’S FIRST TE LGBTQ+ REPRENTATN.“WE DIDN’T GO FAR ENOUGH TO WARRANT ACLAS,” HE RECENTLY TOLD THE INPENNT. “WE DIDN’T GO FAR ENOUGH TO SAY, ‘LOOK HOW BRAVE WE ARE.’ 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.”AT THE TIME OF BETY AND THE BEAST’S RELEASE, THE IMPLITN THAT A BELOVED ANIMATED CHARACTER WOULD BE QUEER ED NTROVERSY. AN ALABAMA THEATER REFED TO SCREEN THE FILM, MALAYSIA BALKED AT SCREENG AN UNCENSORED VERSN OF , AND RSIA APPROVED THE FILM FOR SCREENG BUT WH AN AGE RATG OF 16 AND ABOVE. AMIDST THE FALLOUT, CONDON REVISED HIS EARLIER MENTS, LLG VERAGE OF THE SCENE “OVERBLOWN.” MEANWHILE, GAD TOLD USA TODAY AT THE FILM’S PREMIERE THAT THE SCRIPT DID NOT EXPLICLY DISCLOSE LEFOU’S SEXUALY AS GAY. “THAT WAS NOT LEFOU,” GAD NTUED HIS REMARKS TO THE INPENNT. “IF WE’RE GOG TO PAT OURSELV ON THE BACK, THEN DAMN , WE SHOULD HAVE GONE FURTHER WH THAT. EVERYBODY SERV AN OPPORTUNY TO SEE THEMSELV ON SCREEN, AND I DON’T THK WE’VE DONE ENOUGH—AND I CERTALY HAVEN’T DONE ENOUGH TO DO THAT.”GAD WAS SET TO REPRISE HIS ROLE AS LEFOU A PREQUEL SERI FOR DISNEY+, WHICH WOULD HAVE RNED WH EVANS’S GASTON. HOWEVER, DISNEY POSTPONED THE PROJECT EARLIER THIS YEAR, DUE TO CREATIVE LAYS. “WE TRIED TO MAKE ALL WORK BUT UNR THE GUN WASN’T MEANT TO BE…FOR NOW,” GAD, WHO WAS ALSO A SHOWNNER ON THE SERI, TWEETED. “THE CHARACTERS AND THIS STORY WILL LIVE ON, BUT SOMETIM THE BT TENTNS & REALY LLI & NOTHG N BE DONE.”MORE GREAT STORI FROM VANY FAIR— JERRY LEWIS’S COSTARS SPEAK OUT: “HE GRABBED ME. HE BEGAN TO FONDLE ME. I WAS DUMBSTCK”— INSI CHARLIZE THERON AND TOM HARDY’S MAD MAX WAR— INVENTG ANNA IS A “DANGERO” DISTORTN, SAYS RACHEL WILLIAMS— HOW THE GUN ALEC BALDW’S HANDS TURNED THE RT SET DEADLY— LOVE IS BLD SEASON TWO IS PEAK RED FLAG TELEVISN— PACHKO FIRST LOOK: AN EPIC TALE, AND A HISTORY-MAKG SHOW— VANY FAIR’S HOLLYWOOD ISSUE 2022: SEE THE FULL PORTFOL FEATURG NILE KIDMAN, KRISTEN STEWART, AND MORE— THE UGLY TTH OF HOW MOVIE SR ARE MA— KIRSTEN DUNST ON HER FIRST OSR NOMATN FOR THE POWER OF THE DOG— FROM THE ARCHIVE: WH FRIENDS LIKE THE— SIGN UP FOR THE “HWD DAILY” NEWSLETTER FOR MT-READ DTRY AND AWARDS VERAGE—PL A SPECIAL WEEKLY EDN OF “AWARDS INSIR.”MOST POPULARVANY FAIR’S “IT’S RAG TEENS” COVER AT 20: WHERE ARE THEY NOW?BY SAVANNAH WALSHRED, WHE & ROYAL BLUE MAY BE “THE MOST EXPENSIVE B OF FAN FICTN EVER”BY SAVANNAH WALSHTHE CAST OF OPPENHEIMER AND THE REAL PEOPLE THEY PLAYBY HILLARY BISSAVANNAH WALSH

Provg childhood dreams do e te, Gaston's gay! He's, shall we say: gayg backward, livg a glass closet, not-askg/not-tellg, or what ever phamism strik your fancy. Still, Evans, went on to addrs the rather unheard of prospect of beg a gay actn 's good for people to look at me and thk this guy is dog his thg and enjoyg what he's dog and succsful at and livg his other words, n a bch live?

WHY ‘BETY AND THE BEAST’S GAY CHARACTER IS NOT AS GROUNDBREAKG AS DISNEY BELIEV

It certaly shouldn't matter, but do bee 's pretty ol to have an openly gay actn star. Even if the "star" part is still up the 's pretty ol to have a gay guy playg such a stereotypilly mascule character, if only for the evable fan fictn starrg Evans and Stevens.

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.

ALL THE CHARACTERS 'BETY AND THE BEAST' WHO WERE PROBABLY GAY ALL ALONG

"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.

17 GAY AND LGBTQ DISNEY CHARACTERS – OM D TO NON TO TASTROPHE

"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. He uldn't possible be a homosexual.

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

Which n e a lot of prsure and anxiety, pecially if 's the 1700s and you're a closeted gay man.

The lyrics Gaston are unniably homoerotic:. The highly anticipated live-actn remake of “Bety and the Beast” will feature a gay character for the first time Disney's history, acrdg to the film’s director. Director Bill Condon said an terview wh Attu, a Brish gay magaze, that LeFou, the goofy sikick of the film’s ma villa, Gaston, will fd his own subplot by explorg his sexualy.

THE TOUCHG TRIBUTE BEHD DISNEY’S FIRST OPENLY GAY CHARACTER

” Condon promised the film will have a “nice, exclively gay moment” at the the LGBTQ have been advotg to see themselv reprented Disney films.

Those g were advotg for givg the lead character Disney’s blockbter h “Frozen” a female love tert the news of LeFou beg Disney’s first gay character, however, was met wh mixed reactns. In 2017, Disney's "Bety and the Beast" director said the movie had an "exclively gay moment.