‘Strange World’ Is Disney’s First Animated Movie Wh a Gay Lead. Why Is It Beg Buried?

Contents:

• HERE'S HOW 'STRANGE WORLD' TRODUC THE FIRST OUT GAY TEENAGER A DISNEY ANIMATED FILM: 'IT WAS A BETIFUL THG TO BE A PART OF'
• ‘STRANGE WORLD’ IS DISNEY’S FIRST ANIMATED MOVIE WH A GAY LEAD. WHY IS IT BEG BURIED?
• DID DISNEY BURY STRANGE WORLD BEE OF GAY CHARACTER?
• LIST: 'STRANGE WORLD' REVIEWS ABOUT DISNEY'S FIRST OUT GAY, CHARACTER, BIRACIAL QUEER TEEN
• FLORIDA TEACHER SAYS SHE IS UNR VTIGATN AFTER SHOWG 5TH GRA CLASS DISNEY MOVIE WH GAY CHARACTER
• NOLTE: DISNEY’S BIG GAY, GREEN ‘STRANGE WORLD’ CRASH AT BOX OFFICE
• FLORIDA TEACHER UNR VTIGATN FOR SHOWG DISNEY MOVIE WH GAY CHARACTER SAYS SHE DIDN’T KNOW LGBTQ RTRICTN APPLIED TO HER CLASS
• ‘STRANGE WORLD’ IS DISNEY’S FIRST ANIMATED MOVIE WH A GAY LEAD. WHY IS IT BEG BURIED?INVISIBLEJABOIE YOUNG-WHE VOIC THE FIRST OUT, QUEER LEAD CHARACTER A DISNEY ANIMATED FILM. THE PROBLEM: YOU PROBABLY DIDN’T EVEN KNOW THE MOVIE, “STRANGE WORLD,” EXISTS.ALLEGRA FRANKDEPUTY ENTERTAMENT EDORUPDATED NOV. 26, 2022 5:02AM EST / PUBLISHED NOV. 23, 2022 7:00PM EST DISNEYDISNEY HAS TWO MOVI THEATERS RIGHT NOW STARRG QUEER CHARACTERS—BUT YOU’D BE HARD-PRSED TO NAME BOTH OF THEM. IN BLACK PANTHER: WAKANDA FOREVER, MICHAELA COEL PLAYS A WARRR WH A FEMALE PARTNER, A RELATNSHIP GIVEN THE MOST CURSORY OF NODS TOWARD THE END OF THE MOVIE WHEN THE PAIR LLS EACH OTHER “LOVE.” THAT FET TOWARD SEXUAL DIVERSY IS PAR FOR THE URSE WH DISNEY MOVI THE DAYS: SPRKLE A LTLE QUEERNS THERE FOR THE FOLKS AT HOME, BUT NOT TOO MUCH, SO THAT N BE EASILY EXCISED FOR THE OVERSEAS RELEASE. (EHER WAY, BIGOTS ARE UNHAPPY.)VERY MUCH NOT PAR FOR THE URSE, THOUGH, IS THE OTHER DISNEY MOVIE WH A QUEER HERO PLAYG THIS WEEKEND. STRANGE WORLD BOASTS NOT ONLY A QUEER TEEN LEAD, VOICED BY IRL QUEER EDY IN JABOIE YOUNG-WHE, BUT THAT QUEER TEEN IS ALSO BIRACIAL. BETWEEN THE EXPLIC QUEERNS AND THE TERRACIAL FAY AT S CENTER, STRANGE WORLD IS SHOCKGLY PROGRSIVE—WELL, AS FAR AS HOLLYWOOD FAY FILMS GO. ESPECIALLY ON OM DISNEY.YET STRANGE WORLD HAS LAND NEHER WH A BANG NOR A WHIMPER. INSTEAD, THE BIGGT STUD THE WORLD HAS RELEASED A NEW FEATURE FILM WH PRACTILLY ZERO FANFARE. THERE ARE NO STRANGE WORLD TOYS AT MCDONALD’S RIGHT NOW. YOUTUBE ISN’T BOMBARDG WH TRAILERS. REVIEWS DROPPED TWO DAYS BEFORE THE FILM’S RELEASE, GENERATG NO NVERSATN. AND EVEN FOX NEWS HAS MA NARY A PEEP ABOUT STRANGE WORLD’S DISURSE-READY STG.IT’S EASY TO SPECULATE AS TO WHY STRANGE WORLD HAS BASILLY BEEN DUMPED TO THEATERS. THE DISPIRG EXPLANATN ULD BE THAT DISNEY, FEARG UPROAR OM ALL MATTERS OF THE RIGHT, HAS CHEWED ANY BIG PROMO S MORE HOMOGENO FILMS RECEIVE. ALL PRS IS GOOD PRS, UNLS ’S ABOUT A RTOON WHERE TWO PEOPLE OF THE SAME GENR HOLD HANDS. THAT’S WHEN THE BAD CHATTER N GET BOTH TOXIC FOR SOCIETY AND POISONO TO THE BOX OFFICE. (LIGHTYEAR, I’M LOOKG AT YOU.) DISNEY THAT THE FILM CENTERS AN TERRACIAL UPLE (DAD SEARCHER, VOICED BY JAKE GYLLENHAAL, AND MOM MERIDIAN, VOICED BY GABRIELLE UNN) AND THEIR QUEER SON, ETHAN (YOUNG-WHE), SHOULD FEEL LS EXCG THAN IS; BY REAL-WORLD STANDARDS, THIS ULD BE A REGULAR-GULAR AMERIN FAY. BUT PALISM IS NOT THE REAL WORLD, JT A LN UPON SOCIETY’S BRA, AND ONE FLUENCED BY THE MYOPIC END OF THE SOCPOLIL SPECTM. WHICH IS WHY UNR THE HOLLYWOOD SYSTEM, STRANGE WORLD UNTS AS SPECTACULARLY DIVERSE. CRICS SEEKG TO UPHOLD THE OUTDATED STAT QUO OF WHE, CISGENR HETERONORMATIVY N’T HELP BUT REMARK UPON ANY SEMBLANCE OF DIVERSY. TH, ’S EASIER FOR DISNEY TO SHY AWAY OM STRANGE WORLD’S MAKP THAN POT AT . GOTTA LOVE THE FLUENCE OF VTORS ON THE CREATIVE PROCS!BUT AFTER WATCHG THE MOVIE, THERE SEEMS LIKE A SIMPLER EXPLANATN FOR DISNEY’S SHYNS AROUND STRANGE WORLD. SIMPLY PUT, STRANGE WORLD IS THE MOST BORG MOVIE DISNEY HAS RELEASED YEARS.FOR ALL THAT TALK ABOUT WHAT MAK EXCG, THE MOVIE SELF IS CREDIBLY FORMULAIC. STRANGE WORLD IS SET 25 YEARS AFTER SEARCHER’S REVOLUTNARY DISVERY OF A NEW ROURCE, PANDO, UPON WHICH THE FICTNAL WORLD OF AVALONIA N RELY. HE ONLY MAK THIS DISVERY, HOWEVER, AFTER GOG AGAST THE WISH OF HIS EXPLORER FATHER, JAEGER (DENNIS QUAID). SEARCHER AND JAEGER HAVE BEEN TRANGED EVER SCE. THIS DAMAGED FATHER-SON RELATNSHIP TO THE FORE WHEN SEARCHER MT JOURNEY TO THE CENTER OF THE PLA TO HELP ERADITE WHATEVER HAS BEEN DRAG THE PANDO THEY NEED. WHEN SEARCHER ENUNTERS JAEGER ON THAT MISSN, THEY RNE AND HAVE TO LEARN TO ACCEPT EACH OTHER FOR WHO THEY ARE. DISNEY SEARCHER HAS A PARALLEL STGGLE GOG ON WH HIS OWN SON, ETHAN, WHO DON’T WANT TO BE LIKE HIS GRANDPA OR HIS DAD. ETHAN WANTS TO CHART HIS OWN PATH, STUDYG THE WORLD’S ABUNDANT CREATUR AND FLORA. BUT THAT PLOT IS DOWNPLAYED FAVOR OF ETHAN’S EFFORTS TO REPAIR SEARCHER’S RELATNSHIP WH HIS FATHER—AND SAVE THE WORLD AT THE SAME TIME.IN THE FILM, ETHAN IS ALREADY ACCEPTED AND LOVED FOR WHO HE IS WAYS THAT WE ARE FORCED TO NSIR REMARKABLE: ETHAN LIK ONE OF HIS (MALE) IENDS, AND HIS IEND LIK HIM BACK. AN EARLY SCENE SHOWS ETHAN FLTERED AS HIS CSH FLIRTS WH HIM; SEARCHER SHOWS UP AND TRI TO WGMAN FOR HIS SON. EVERYONE IS ROOTG FOR ETHAN AND THIS NICE YOUNG FELLA TO GET TOGETHER, CLUDG HIS OTHERWISE STUBBORN GRANDPA. STRANGE WORLD’S GOT MORE LEGIMATE PROBLEMS TO AL WH THAN ETHAN’S SEXUALY. WHICH IS WONRFUL, EVEN IF SHOULD WARRANT A BIG “WELL, DUH.”BUT THE VERY MONPLACE PROBLEMS OF DADS AND SONS NOT VIBG SEIZE THE FILM’S SPOTLIGHT, TO S TRIMENT. THIS IS A MOVIE WH A LEGIMATELY EPIC SPE TO PLAY WH. WHILE ETHAN IS TELLG HIS DAD THAT HE DON’T WANT TO HARVT PANDO WHEN HE GROWS UP, HE DON’T JT WALK AWAY AND SLAM THE DOOR TO HIS ROOM. HE JUMPS OFF THEIR SPACHIP AND SAILS TO THE UNKNOWN UPON THE BACKS OF A SCHOOL OF EXTRATERRTRIAL FISH CREATUR. HE BEIENDS A LIFE SIZE BACTERIUM, WHO SAV ETHAN OM BEG NSUMED BY SENTIENT TENTACL. ETHAN AND HIS DAD RENCILE THEIR DIFFERENC WHILE STARG TO A GIGANTIC EYEBALL. YET ’S NOT THE EYEBALL OR THE TENTACL OR THE FISH THAT THE FILM PRRIZ, BUT THE STAID “YOU DON’T GET ME, DAD!” DRAMA. THIS IS A FILM THAT WANTS TO BE MORE VTED SEARCHER AND JAEGER’S RELATNSHIP THAN A LIGHTFULLY SIGNED “WALKG LANDMASS” CREATURE. PERHAPS THAT’S ANOTHER TENTNAL CHOICE, MEANT TO SHIELD THE FILM OM NSERVATIVE CRIQUE. IT TOYS WH A STRONG ENVIRONMENTALIST MSAGE TOWARD THE END, WH A LATE-STATE REVEAL RAISG QUTNS ABOUT ETHIL NSUMPTN OF NATURAL ROURC. THE WORLD OF STRANGE WORLD IS ALIVE, VIBRANT, LH, AND VAST, BUT THE MOVIE’S SEEMGLY WELL-TENTNED HUMANS HARDLY NOTICE. IT’S IRONIC THAT THE FILM IS SIARLY IGNORANT OF S GEOLY ANIMATED ENVIRONMENTS; CLIMATE CHANGE NIERS WILL CERTALY APPRECIATE HOW UNTERTED THE SCRIPT IS ENGAGG WH THE FILM’S LANDSP, OPTG FOR NSTANT QUIPS AND EXPLANATORY DIALOGUE STEAD. LS TALK ABOUT SAVG THE PLA, MORE TALK ABOUT HOW AWOME DADS ARE!BUT THIS IS GIVG DISNEY TOO MUCH CRED HERE. STRANGE WORLD WAS NEVER STED TO BE A HOT-BUTTON ISSUE WH ANTI-GAY, RACIST, FOSSIL FUEL-LOVG PUNDS. THAT WOULD REQUIRE ANYONE WATCHG THE FILM FEELG ANYTHG AT ALL—SOMETHG STRANGE WORLD ISN’T PABLE OF DOG. ALLEGRA FRANK
• DISNEY'S 'STRANGE WORLD' FEATUR THEIR FIRST OPENLY GAY CHARACTER — WHO IS BEHD THE VOICE?

HERE'S HOW 'STRANGE WORLD' TRODUC THE FIRST OUT GAY TEENAGER A DISNEY ANIMATED FILM: 'IT WAS A BETIFUL THG TO BE A PART OF'

But the scene sparked bate due to two issu: Florida’s ntroversial “Don’t Say Gay” law, which prohibs any class discsn about sexual orientatn and genr inty to stunts younger than ne years old, and Disney’s efforts as a pany to have repealed. His father supports him and giv him advice, not focg on whether his son is gay or not, but simply as a father who is by his son’s si matters of love.

Strange World's Ethan Cla (voiced by Jaboie Young-Whe) is among the first out gay characters a Disney animated film.

23, the movie also monstrat the Moe Hoe's renewed mment to LGBTQ reprentatn by showsg the first out gay teenager a Disney rtoon feature. That character is Ethan Cla, and he's voiced by out gay edian and actor Jaboie Young-Whe. "For her part, Unn not that her recent remake of Cheaper by the Dozen — which premiered on Disney+ March — featured one of Disney's first live actn gay teens (played by Caylee Blosensk), but says much of that storyle was downplayed the fished film.

‘STRANGE WORLD’ IS DISNEY’S FIRST ANIMATED MOVIE WH A GAY LEAD. WHY IS IT BEG BURIED?

Both the 2020 animated feature, Onward, which featured Disney's first self-intified lbian character, and 2022's Lightyear, which featured the stud's first same-sex kiss, were banned Sdi Arabia and other Gulf natns where homosexual nduct is still illegal. The dispirg explanatn uld be that Disney, fearg uproar om all matters of the right, has chewed any big promo s more homogeno films receive. Strange World was never sted to be a hot button issue wh anti-gay, racist, fossil fuel-lovg punds.

DID DISNEY BURY STRANGE WORLD BEE OF GAY CHARACTER?

The animated tale clud Disney's first biracial gay teen, Ethan Cla (voiced by Jaboie Young-Whe), wh a small scene of him gettg tongue-tied near his csh, Diazo -- and there are those who thk that led Disney to liberately bury the film.

LIST: 'STRANGE WORLD' REVIEWS ABOUT DISNEY'S FIRST OUT GAY, CHARACTER, BIRACIAL QUEER TEEN

A bunch of fat boomer parents are jt mad about the gay character. If you thk gay people existg is them shovg their 'liftyle' down your throat and stggle to have simple nversatns wh your children bee of that then maybe jt skip . Chapek had been cricized for, among other thgs, a belated and mishandled rponse to the "don't say gay" legislatn Florida, where Disney is the largt employer.

FLORIDA TEACHER SAYS SHE IS UNR VTIGATN AFTER SHOWG 5TH GRA CLASS DISNEY MOVIE WH GAY CHARACTER

It's the first Disney movie featurg an out-gay character named Ethan Cla, played by gay edian Jaboie Young-Whe. " Below are 11 excerpts om media webs and the different tak crics had on the gay character, characters Disney, Marvel? Photos of 8 Disney, Marvel characters who are gay, lbian or bisexualUSA TODAY lls 'Strange World' 'extremely morn'"Fans of pulpy 1930s and ’40s hero such as Doc Savage and Flash Gordon will dig the over-the-top actn vibe, yet “Strange World” is extremely morn s them.

NOLTE: DISNEY’S BIG GAY, GREEN ‘STRANGE WORLD’ CRASH AT BOX OFFICE

It taps to real-world issu of nservatn and staabily of natural rourc, and there’s a strong sense of cln – Ethan’s a biracial gay teen, Legend mak up for a missg leg wh boundls energy – and the most wele aspect is that 's all pretty normal.

(Ethan tak after gramps the adventurg partment, but he’s also sensive and openly gay a way that has never been more explic a Disney movie. "Indie Wire: 'First ever gay character... Feels timid'"Ethan is the stud’s bajillnth 'first ever gay character' (and his fay is one of a few terracial fai all of Disney), but as progrsive as is, even that feels timid: His csh appears one scene at the begng of the movie, and apart om a short nversatn is not mentned aga — easily cut to appease the ternatnal censors that provi Disney wh so much of s revenue.

FLORIDA TEACHER UNR VTIGATN FOR SHOWG DISNEY MOVIE WH GAY CHARACTER SAYS SHE DIDN’T KNOW LGBTQ RTRICTN APPLIED TO HER CLASS

)"Vulture: 'Ethan is Black and unmistakably queer'"That Strange World’s sendary hero, Ethan, is Black and unmistakably queer (no “exclively gay moments” here — he do some sweetly awkward flirtg wh his csh one of his earlier scen) is noteworthy. "The Guardian: 'Wokens' and avodo toast"Ethan is Disney’s first openly gay teenager and, predictably, rightwg activists have lled for a boytt. In addn to Ethan beg gay, has that environmental msage and – oh, the wokens – a scene which avodo on toast is served.

In rponse, the last few years have seen the stud attempt to tout var first “gay moments” and queer characters that for the most part were ’s a pleasant surprise that Ethan and his obv csh on his iend Diazo arrive wh mimal fanfare (pecially pared wh “Lightyear” and some Marvel stallments). He is gay and has a csh on another boy he go to school wh. "AP: 'Strange World' plot is more than a 'gay moment'"There’s also the not-signifint fact that Ethan has a same-sex csh.

‘STRANGE WORLD’ IS DISNEY’S FIRST ANIMATED MOVIE WH A GAY LEAD. WHY IS IT BEG BURIED?INVISIBLEJABOIE YOUNG-WHE VOIC THE FIRST OUT, QUEER LEAD CHARACTER A DISNEY ANIMATED FILM. THE PROBLEM: YOU PROBABLY DIDN’T EVEN KNOW THE MOVIE, “STRANGE WORLD,” EXISTS.ALLEGRA FRANKDEPUTY ENTERTAMENT EDORUPDATED NOV. 26, 2022 5:02AM EST / PUBLISHED NOV. 23, 2022 7:00PM EST DISNEYDISNEY HAS TWO MOVI THEATERS RIGHT NOW STARRG QUEER CHARACTERS—BUT YOU’D BE HARD-PRSED TO NAME BOTH OF THEM. IN BLACK PANTHER: WAKANDA FOREVER, MICHAELA COEL PLAYS A WARRR WH A FEMALE PARTNER, A RELATNSHIP GIVEN THE MOST CURSORY OF NODS TOWARD THE END OF THE MOVIE WHEN THE PAIR LLS EACH OTHER “LOVE.” THAT FET TOWARD SEXUAL DIVERSY IS PAR FOR THE URSE WH DISNEY MOVI THE DAYS: SPRKLE A LTLE QUEERNS THERE FOR THE FOLKS AT HOME, BUT NOT TOO MUCH, SO THAT N BE EASILY EXCISED FOR THE OVERSEAS RELEASE. (EHER WAY, BIGOTS ARE UNHAPPY.)VERY MUCH NOT PAR FOR THE URSE, THOUGH, IS THE OTHER DISNEY MOVIE WH A QUEER HERO PLAYG THIS WEEKEND. STRANGE WORLD BOASTS NOT ONLY A QUEER TEEN LEAD, VOICED BY IRL QUEER EDY IN JABOIE YOUNG-WHE, BUT THAT QUEER TEEN IS ALSO BIRACIAL. BETWEEN THE EXPLIC QUEERNS AND THE TERRACIAL FAY AT S CENTER, STRANGE WORLD IS SHOCKGLY PROGRSIVE—WELL, AS FAR AS HOLLYWOOD FAY FILMS GO. ESPECIALLY ON OM DISNEY.YET STRANGE WORLD HAS LAND NEHER WH A BANG NOR A WHIMPER. INSTEAD, THE BIGGT STUD THE WORLD HAS RELEASED A NEW FEATURE FILM WH PRACTILLY ZERO FANFARE. THERE ARE NO STRANGE WORLD TOYS AT MCDONALD’S RIGHT NOW. YOUTUBE ISN’T BOMBARDG WH TRAILERS. REVIEWS DROPPED TWO DAYS BEFORE THE FILM’S RELEASE, GENERATG NO NVERSATN. AND EVEN FOX NEWS HAS MA NARY A PEEP ABOUT STRANGE WORLD’S DISURSE-READY STG.IT’S EASY TO SPECULATE AS TO WHY STRANGE WORLD HAS BASILLY BEEN DUMPED TO THEATERS. THE DISPIRG EXPLANATN ULD BE THAT DISNEY, FEARG UPROAR OM ALL MATTERS OF THE RIGHT, HAS CHEWED ANY BIG PROMO S MORE HOMOGENO FILMS RECEIVE. ALL PRS IS GOOD PRS, UNLS ’S ABOUT A RTOON WHERE TWO PEOPLE OF THE SAME GENR HOLD HANDS. THAT’S WHEN THE BAD CHATTER N GET BOTH TOXIC FOR SOCIETY AND POISONO TO THE BOX OFFICE. (LIGHTYEAR, I’M LOOKG AT YOU.) DISNEY THAT THE FILM CENTERS AN TERRACIAL UPLE (DAD SEARCHER, VOICED BY JAKE GYLLENHAAL, AND MOM MERIDIAN, VOICED BY GABRIELLE UNN) AND THEIR QUEER SON, ETHAN (YOUNG-WHE), SHOULD FEEL LS EXCG THAN IS; BY REAL-WORLD STANDARDS, THIS ULD BE A REGULAR-GULAR AMERIN FAY. BUT PALISM IS NOT THE REAL WORLD, JT A LN UPON SOCIETY’S BRA, AND ONE FLUENCED BY THE MYOPIC END OF THE SOCPOLIL SPECTM. WHICH IS WHY UNR THE HOLLYWOOD SYSTEM, STRANGE WORLD UNTS AS SPECTACULARLY DIVERSE. CRICS SEEKG TO UPHOLD THE OUTDATED STAT QUO OF WHE, CISGENR HETERONORMATIVY N’T HELP BUT REMARK UPON ANY SEMBLANCE OF DIVERSY. TH, ’S EASIER FOR DISNEY TO SHY AWAY OM STRANGE WORLD’S MAKP THAN POT AT . GOTTA LOVE THE FLUENCE OF VTORS ON THE CREATIVE PROCS!BUT AFTER WATCHG THE MOVIE, THERE SEEMS LIKE A SIMPLER EXPLANATN FOR DISNEY’S SHYNS AROUND STRANGE WORLD. SIMPLY PUT, STRANGE WORLD IS THE MOST BORG MOVIE DISNEY HAS RELEASED YEARS.FOR ALL THAT TALK ABOUT WHAT MAK EXCG, THE MOVIE SELF IS CREDIBLY FORMULAIC. STRANGE WORLD IS SET 25 YEARS AFTER SEARCHER’S REVOLUTNARY DISVERY OF A NEW ROURCE, PANDO, UPON WHICH THE FICTNAL WORLD OF AVALONIA N RELY. HE ONLY MAK THIS DISVERY, HOWEVER, AFTER GOG AGAST THE WISH OF HIS EXPLORER FATHER, JAEGER (DENNIS QUAID). SEARCHER AND JAEGER HAVE BEEN TRANGED EVER SCE. THIS DAMAGED FATHER-SON RELATNSHIP TO THE FORE WHEN SEARCHER MT JOURNEY TO THE CENTER OF THE PLA TO HELP ERADITE WHATEVER HAS BEEN DRAG THE PANDO THEY NEED. WHEN SEARCHER ENUNTERS JAEGER ON THAT MISSN, THEY RNE AND HAVE TO LEARN TO ACCEPT EACH OTHER FOR WHO THEY ARE. DISNEY SEARCHER HAS A PARALLEL STGGLE GOG ON WH HIS OWN SON, ETHAN, WHO DON’T WANT TO BE LIKE HIS GRANDPA OR HIS DAD. ETHAN WANTS TO CHART HIS OWN PATH, STUDYG THE WORLD’S ABUNDANT CREATUR AND FLORA. BUT THAT PLOT IS DOWNPLAYED FAVOR OF ETHAN’S EFFORTS TO REPAIR SEARCHER’S RELATNSHIP WH HIS FATHER—AND SAVE THE WORLD AT THE SAME TIME.IN THE FILM, ETHAN IS ALREADY ACCEPTED AND LOVED FOR WHO HE IS WAYS THAT WE ARE FORCED TO NSIR REMARKABLE: ETHAN LIK ONE OF HIS (MALE) IENDS, AND HIS IEND LIK HIM BACK. AN EARLY SCENE SHOWS ETHAN FLTERED AS HIS CSH FLIRTS WH HIM; SEARCHER SHOWS UP AND TRI TO WGMAN FOR HIS SON. EVERYONE IS ROOTG FOR ETHAN AND THIS NICE YOUNG FELLA TO GET TOGETHER, CLUDG HIS OTHERWISE STUBBORN GRANDPA. STRANGE WORLD’S GOT MORE LEGIMATE PROBLEMS TO AL WH THAN ETHAN’S SEXUALY. WHICH IS WONRFUL, EVEN IF SHOULD WARRANT A BIG “WELL, DUH.”BUT THE VERY MONPLACE PROBLEMS OF DADS AND SONS NOT VIBG SEIZE THE FILM’S SPOTLIGHT, TO S TRIMENT. THIS IS A MOVIE WH A LEGIMATELY EPIC SPE TO PLAY WH. WHILE ETHAN IS TELLG HIS DAD THAT HE DON’T WANT TO HARVT PANDO WHEN HE GROWS UP, HE DON’T JT WALK AWAY AND SLAM THE DOOR TO HIS ROOM. HE JUMPS OFF THEIR SPACHIP AND SAILS TO THE UNKNOWN UPON THE BACKS OF A SCHOOL OF EXTRATERRTRIAL FISH CREATUR. HE BEIENDS A LIFE SIZE BACTERIUM, WHO SAV ETHAN OM BEG NSUMED BY SENTIENT TENTACL. ETHAN AND HIS DAD RENCILE THEIR DIFFERENC WHILE STARG TO A GIGANTIC EYEBALL. YET ’S NOT THE EYEBALL OR THE TENTACL OR THE FISH THAT THE FILM PRRIZ, BUT THE STAID “YOU DON’T GET ME, DAD!” DRAMA. THIS IS A FILM THAT WANTS TO BE MORE VTED SEARCHER AND JAEGER’S RELATNSHIP THAN A LIGHTFULLY SIGNED “WALKG LANDMASS” CREATURE. PERHAPS THAT’S ANOTHER TENTNAL CHOICE, MEANT TO SHIELD THE FILM OM NSERVATIVE CRIQUE. IT TOYS WH A STRONG ENVIRONMENTALIST MSAGE TOWARD THE END, WH A LATE-STATE REVEAL RAISG QUTNS ABOUT ETHIL NSUMPTN OF NATURAL ROURC. THE WORLD OF STRANGE WORLD IS ALIVE, VIBRANT, LH, AND VAST, BUT THE MOVIE’S SEEMGLY WELL-TENTNED HUMANS HARDLY NOTICE. IT’S IRONIC THAT THE FILM IS SIARLY IGNORANT OF S GEOLY ANIMATED ENVIRONMENTS; CLIMATE CHANGE NIERS WILL CERTALY APPRECIATE HOW UNTERTED THE SCRIPT IS ENGAGG WH THE FILM’S LANDSP, OPTG FOR NSTANT QUIPS AND EXPLANATORY DIALOGUE STEAD. LS TALK ABOUT SAVG THE PLA, MORE TALK ABOUT HOW AWOME DADS ARE!BUT THIS IS GIVG DISNEY TOO MUCH CRED HERE. STRANGE WORLD WAS NEVER STED TO BE A HOT-BUTTON ISSUE WH ANTI-GAY, RACIST, FOSSIL FUEL-LOVG PUNDS. THAT WOULD REQUIRE ANYONE WATCHG THE FILM FEELG ANYTHG AT ALL—SOMETHG STRANGE WORLD ISN’T PABLE OF DOG. ALLEGRA FRANK

This has led some to ll the film the first Disney animated gay teen romance.

That’s a b of a stretch, bee this buddg romance is a si plot, referred to by a number of characters, but by no means a major topic of maybe that’s the pot — if ’s not a major plot pot, nor is a sneeze-and-you-miss moment like, for example, that quick glance “Bety and the Beast” 2017 that was herald as the first Disney “gay moment. Sure, some untri will lose their mds over there beg a gay character a Disney movie, which mak all the more urageo that producer Roy Conli emed time to expand the stud’s “Someday My Prce Will Come” ia of romance.

"Hollywood Reporter: 'Strange World' character's sexualy is a fact of life"A particularly tenr sequence which Searcher meets Ethan’s csh, Diazo (Jonathan Melo), sets up, wh ltle fanfare, a historic moment for the nservative stud: Ethan is the first out gay teenager a Disney animated and Nguyen treat Ethan’s sexualy as a fact of life stead of a battleground on which he mt seek faial acceptance, a move that reliev Ethan of the banaly of beg an avatar. "Deadle lists among 'Biggt Bombs' of 2022"Some might say Disney’s embrace of a gay character the film turned off red-state dienc, while crics found the fantasy pic to be clunky and prehensible, and the animatn retro and stale.

DISNEY'S 'STRANGE WORLD' FEATUR THEIR FIRST OPENLY GAY CHARACTER — WHO IS BEHD THE VOICE?

Acrdg to Deadle, progrsive polics might not have allowed Disney to simply jettison what uld be a subpar movie directly to streamg: “Had ‘Strange World’ gone straight to Disney+, would be a PR nightmare for the stud, particularly the wake of [former Disney CEO Bob] Chapek’s Florida ‘Don’t Say Gay’ quagmire. It featured a gay kiss, and Pixar ially removed the scene before addg back as Disney publicly opposed Florida Gov.