‘Rocketman’ Blaz Trail as First Major Stud Film to Depict Gay Male Sex – The Hollywood Reporter

Contents:

• 'ROCKETMAN' STAR TARON EGERTON ON GAY STORYLE: 'I'M VERY PROUD THAT OUR MOVIE PUTS ONT AND CENTER'
• ROCKETMAN AND THE LGBTQ AWAKENG: HOW ONE SCENE CAPTUR THE RIGHT EMOTNSPRIYA SRIDHAR·FOLLOWPUBLISHED PERMANENT NERD NETWORK·5 M READ·JAN 15, 2021--SHAREROCKETMAN SEEMED TO BETTER PTURE WHAT BEG LGBTQ IS LIKE THAN BOHEMIAN RHAPSODY DID, ALL POWER TO RAMI MALEK FOR A SPECTACULAR. ACTG PERFORMANCE. IT’S THAT WE GOT MORE TELLG, LS SHOWG FOR FREDDIE MERCURY BEG BISEXUAL — DON’T GIVE ME ANY THAT HE’S JT GAY, THE MAN WAS BI — AND BEG TOLD BY PEOPLE AROUND HIM WHAT HE IS. EVERY BISEXUAL N TELL YOU THAT HURTS WHEN YOU ARE NOT SEEN.ELTON IS NOT SEEN AS A GAY MAN, MUCH LIKE NO ONE SAW FREDDIE AS BISEXUAL, AND HIS ACTORS E SUBTLE BODY LANGUAGE AND MANNERISMS TO NVEY THAT NFN. HE WANTS TO HI WHAT HE IS OM THE WORLD, BUT OUT ALONG WH HIS MIL TALENT. ELTON LOV PATTERNS DRSMAKG MAGAZ, SEQUS, AND SHOPPG FOR FANCY OUTFS. EVEN SO, EVERY MISERABLE EXPRSN SHOWS THAT HE WANTS TO FD LOVE, BUT WORRI THAT HE NEVER WILL.THE BPIC THE SONGS THAT MA ELTON’S NAME TO NOTE IMPORTANT MOMENTS OF HIS LIFE. HE EXPRS ANGUISH ABOUT G OUT OF THE CLOSET UNR PROTT, ATTEMPTG SUICI, AND NEARLY LOSG HIS BT IEND WHEN THE LATTER GENTLY LEAV HIM TO CLEAN UP HIS ACT. ELTON ALSO TALKS ABOUT HIS FIRST LOVE, AND WHAT MEANS WHEN A ROMANTIC RELATNSHIP GO SOUR. HE LV TO DUETS WH BERNIE AND JOHN REID, WHO REPRENT OPPOSE SIS OF THE . BERNIE LOV ELTON BUT HAS HIS OWN LIFE. JOHN WANTS TO E THE MAN AND REF TO LEAVE.WE ONLY GET A HANDFUL OF SCEN WHERE ELTON IS TOLD ABOUT WHAT HE IS, AND ’S SHOWN THAT THE PEOPLE ARE THE WRONG. HIS MOTHER TELLS HIM HE’LL NEVER BE LOVED, BREAKG HIM RIGHT BEFORE A SHOW. BOYIEND AND MANAGER JOHN REID SMACK ELTON FOR EAKG OUT AND LATER TELLS HIM HE’S JT A SOURCE OF SH. EVEN BERNIE TP DON’T SEE ELTON TLY, SUPPORTG HIM BUT ALSO UNAWARE TO AN EXTENT OF ELTON’S CSH ON HIM. HE DAT OTHER WOMEN, TRODUCG THEM TO HIS SONGWRG PARTNER.THE KEY TO ELTON’S CLOSET
• ‘ROCKETMAN’ BLAZ TRAIL AS FIRST MAJOR STUD FILM TO DEPICT GAY MALE SEX
• ROCKETMAN'S GAY MALE SEX SCEN ARE THE FIRST FROM A MAJOR STUD
• ROCKETMAN: ELTON JOHN MOVIE HAS ‘EXPLIC’ GAY SEX SCEN, TARON EGERTON REVEALS
• ELTON JOHN ADMS HE CAN'T WRE LYRICS, REGRETS BEG TOO BY WH DGS TO BE GAY ACTIVIST
• TARON EGERTON CLARIFI HIS SEXUALY THE WAKE OF SPECULATN THAT HE’S GAY
• ROCKETMAN'S GAY SEX SCENE IS A BIG STEP THE RIGHT DIRECTN
• ‘ROCKETMAN’ STAR TARON EGERTON SAYS HE FEELS ‘AT HOME’ AT GAY CLUBS
• ELTON JOHN 'PROUD' OF ROCKETMAN'S LANDMARK GAY SEX SCEN

'ROCKETMAN' STAR TARON EGERTON ON GAY STORYLE: 'I'M VERY PROUD THAT OUR MOVIE PUTS ONT AND CENTER'

Upon hearg that Rocketman’s gay ntent had been removed for the Rsian market, Elton and the filmmakers released a sternly word statement that read: “That the lol distributor has eded out certa scen, nyg the dience the opportuny to see the film as was tend is a sad reflectn of the divid world we still live and how n still be so celly unacceptg of the love between two people. ” And while Egerton prais BoRap — explag that that movie was tend to tell Queen’s story, not jt Freddie Mercury’s — he says of Rocketman, “I'm very proud of the fact that our movie puts [homosexualy] ont and center, bee I thk 's a big part of Elton's history.

”While Rocketman has weathered s own accatns of straightwashg due to s stg of Egerton, who is heterosexual, the leadg role, Egerton says for the most part, “When I speak to journalists who belong to the gay publitns, they've been very, very warm, and very appreciative. It’s that we got more tellg, ls showg for Freddie Mercury beg bisexual — don’t give me any that he’s jt gay, the man was bi — and beg told by people around him what he is.

ROCKETMAN AND THE LGBTQ AWAKENG: HOW ONE SCENE CAPTUR THE RIGHT EMOTNSPRIYA SRIDHAR·FOLLOWPUBLISHED PERMANENT NERD NETWORK·5 M READ·JAN 15, 2021--SHAREROCKETMAN SEEMED TO BETTER PTURE WHAT BEG LGBTQ IS LIKE THAN BOHEMIAN RHAPSODY DID, ALL POWER TO RAMI MALEK FOR A SPECTACULAR. ACTG PERFORMANCE. IT’S THAT WE GOT MORE TELLG, LS SHOWG FOR FREDDIE MERCURY BEG BISEXUAL — DON’T GIVE ME ANY THAT HE’S JT GAY, THE MAN WAS BI — AND BEG TOLD BY PEOPLE AROUND HIM WHAT HE IS. EVERY BISEXUAL N TELL YOU THAT HURTS WHEN YOU ARE NOT SEEN.ELTON IS NOT SEEN AS A GAY MAN, MUCH LIKE NO ONE SAW FREDDIE AS BISEXUAL, AND HIS ACTORS E SUBTLE BODY LANGUAGE AND MANNERISMS TO NVEY THAT NFN. HE WANTS TO HI WHAT HE IS OM THE WORLD, BUT OUT ALONG WH HIS MIL TALENT. ELTON LOV PATTERNS DRSMAKG MAGAZ, SEQUS, AND SHOPPG FOR FANCY OUTFS. EVEN SO, EVERY MISERABLE EXPRSN SHOWS THAT HE WANTS TO FD LOVE, BUT WORRI THAT HE NEVER WILL.THE BPIC THE SONGS THAT MA ELTON’S NAME TO NOTE IMPORTANT MOMENTS OF HIS LIFE. HE EXPRS ANGUISH ABOUT G OUT OF THE CLOSET UNR PROTT, ATTEMPTG SUICI, AND NEARLY LOSG HIS BT IEND WHEN THE LATTER GENTLY LEAV HIM TO CLEAN UP HIS ACT. ELTON ALSO TALKS ABOUT HIS FIRST LOVE, AND WHAT MEANS WHEN A ROMANTIC RELATNSHIP GO SOUR. HE LV TO DUETS WH BERNIE AND JOHN REID, WHO REPRENT OPPOSE SIS OF THE . BERNIE LOV ELTON BUT HAS HIS OWN LIFE. JOHN WANTS TO E THE MAN AND REF TO LEAVE.WE ONLY GET A HANDFUL OF SCEN WHERE ELTON IS TOLD ABOUT WHAT HE IS, AND ’S SHOWN THAT THE PEOPLE ARE THE WRONG. HIS MOTHER TELLS HIM HE’LL NEVER BE LOVED, BREAKG HIM RIGHT BEFORE A SHOW. BOYIEND AND MANAGER JOHN REID SMACK ELTON FOR EAKG OUT AND LATER TELLS HIM HE’S JT A SOURCE OF SH. EVEN BERNIE TP DON’T SEE ELTON TLY, SUPPORTG HIM BUT ALSO UNAWARE TO AN EXTENT OF ELTON’S CSH ON HIM. HE DAT OTHER WOMEN, TRODUCG THEM TO HIS SONGWRG PARTNER.THE KEY TO ELTON’S CLOSET

Every bisexual n tell you that hurts when you are not is not seen as a gay man, much like no one saw Freddie as bisexual, and his actors e subtle body language and mannerisms to nvey that nfn.

Anytime I have heard “Rocket Man” and the meang of the lyrics beg discsed, Elton’s sexualy as a gay man is always brought up.

There is a mon, wi-spread misnceptn that Elton’s lyrics are g the imagery of the rocket as a phallic symbol, prentg the lonels that hnted homosexual men the twentieth century: “I’m a rocket man… Rocket man, burng out his fe up here alone”. ) If Tp had reacted the way many other straight men the ‘60s might have — that is, wh homophobic panic and disgt, and a cisn to immediately sever the iendship — then all of those inic John/Tp posns would have never existed; mic history would que lerally be altered unimagable ways. Well he wasn't openly gay, bee wasn't a possible thg to do back then, but he was a very strong gay character.

‘ROCKETMAN’ BLAZ TRAIL AS FIRST MAJOR STUD FILM TO DEPICT GAY MALE SEX

So we would sort of be tethered behd him gog to all the gay clubs, ” Tp ntu. ”Tp then adds wh a lgh: “I was h on [by gay men the rock scene], of urse, all of the time — bee I was pretty cute back then!

ROCKETMAN'S GAY MALE SEX SCEN ARE THE FIRST FROM A MAJOR STUD

(Photo: Michael Ochs Archiv/Getty Imag)Tp nces that there are some artistic liberti taken Rocketman for the sake of ncise storytellg, though he says “the only thg about the movie that isn't chronologilly rrect is I was not aware of Elton's homosexualy until later than 's portrayed the film. More om Yahoo Entertament:Taron Egerton on the Elton John song that changed his life'Rocketman' star Taron Egerton on gay storyle: 'I'm very proud that our movie puts ont and center'Elton John remembers surprisg Iggy Pop onstage — a gorilla stumeElton John and ‘Rocketman’ filmmakers nmn Rsian censorship of movieFollow Lyndsey on Facebook, Twter, Instagram, Amazon, Spotify.

ROCKETMAN: ELTON JOHN MOVIE HAS ‘EXPLIC’ GAY SEX SCEN, TARON EGERTON REVEALS

Where other studs have balked, Paramount is leadg the way as the first major stud to pict gay male sex onscreen wh s Elton John bpic, Rocketman. The Dexter Fletcher-helmed film, which ma s long-awaed but at the Cann Film Ftival on Thursday night, featured multiple scen wh overt gay uplg, cludg on between Taron Egerton, who plays John, and Richard Madn (portrayg his first gay lover, mic manager John Reid). In the ’70s and early ’80s, gay male sex ocsnally popped up films om pani that might be parable to a Paramount today.

ELTON JOHN ADMS HE CAN'T WRE LYRICS, REGRETS BEG TOO BY WH DGS TO BE GAY ACTIVIST

For stance, Uned Artists backed the 1980 Al Paco thriller Cisg, about a serial killer targetg gay men.

But recent s, the prospect of major studs pictg steamy gay sex has bee a nonstarter. The 1982 Harry Haml starter Makg Love also broke ground at the time for pictg a gay male uple. Given that an R-rated movie featurg gay sex would most certaly disqualify a film om release Cha (to sre a release the lucrative terrory, Bohemian Rhapsody eded out any suggtn that Freddie Mercury was gay), the studs are creasgly hant to greenlight a film wh gay characters, never md graphic gay sex.

For his part, Egerton, who intifi as heterosexual, is surprised by all the hullabaloo surroundg the film’s gay sex scen.

TARON EGERTON CLARIFI HIS SEXUALY THE WAKE OF SPECULATN THAT HE’S GAY

While there have been a few chaste sex scen between men Osr-nomated movi through the years cludg Brokeback Mounta and Call Me by Your Name, the Elton John bpic Rocketman om Paramount is the first major stud film to tly pict gay male sex, acrdg to The Hollywood film stars Taron Edgerton as the inic glam rocker and Richard Madn (Bodyguard) as John's manager and first male lover, John Reid. ”He add: “And for me, pecially as a heterosexual actor, not to ph the envelope as far as I n or try to make a wholehearted celebratn of beg a gay man would be Egerton will star Rocketman (Image: STUDIO STILL)The film will arrive on a wave of hype (Image: GETTY)“It’s a stud movie. ”Gay ntent has notorly been cut om movi certa terrori - wh referenc to Freddie Mercury’s sexualy axed om Bohemian Rhapsody when was released Cha.

The 'Rocket Man' hmaker adms he stggled to wre song lyrics and regrets beg 'too down the p of dgs and drk' to advote for gay rights durg his heyday. Speakg to mician John Grant about gay culture's fluence on mic and art for Bra's The Guardian newspaper, Elton explaed, "I don't see myself as a gay artist, you see, as such bee I don't wre lyrics.

ROCKETMAN'S GAY SEX SCENE IS A BIG STEP THE RIGHT DIRECTN

But I love what pop culture did for gay mic, startg wh Jimmy Somerville and Boy Gee. The 74-year-old in also sisted his "elaborate" performanc aren't him beg "a gay artist, " and nfsed he's "ashamed" he was too out of on dgs and booze to be an activist for the LGBT muny the 1980s at the height of the AIDS epimic. Elton ntued, "I know I'm 'elaborate', but that's not beg a gay artist - that om Brish vville, (Sir) Mick Jagger, Marc Bolan, David Bowie.

I was gog to every gay club the world and was never a big al for me.

I was so happy to be gay! Taron Egerton Clarifi His Sexualy the Wake of Speculatn That He’s Gay"We are all secure who we are.

‘ROCKETMAN’ STAR TARON EGERTON SAYS HE FEELS ‘AT HOME’ AT GAY CLUBS

Egerton has now given an official answer, tellg Rad Tim per Metro, “One of the lads was at my London flat and I Instagrammed a picture of him and said ‘Look at this cutie’, and a ln outlets reported I was g out as gay…I’m not gay but two of my mat me out when I was 15 and was a joy to support them bee, as a group, we are all secure who we are.

There are dance numbers, Bryce Dallas Howard, floatg dienc, a leral rocket man, a much olr Bryce Dallas Howard who aged sudnly, and then, of urse, gay sex. If a mil about the life of Elton John were created whout any of the parts, wouldn't have been a proper mil about the man's 's that last part—the gay sex—that is important to discs.

Happened, or an unted chara of what gay sex might be.

ELTON JOHN 'PROUD' OF ROCKETMAN'S LANDMARK GAY SEX SCEN

Gay sex isn't somethg that Hollywood typilly picts, stead the dtry relegat to nuendos and close ups of men wcg pa. But the Elton John mil tak a moment to reimage how gay sex uld be picted. It often across like a straight man directg two straight men a gay sex scene.

And yet, Rocketman manag to pict a realistic-enough sex scene whout turng the act of terurse or the gayns behd to a villa. It may not be the first time a film stud has featured a gay sex scene, but do feel like the first time a major motn picture stud took the time to make look like the kd of sex you'd actually want to have. But he might as well be talkg about the well-worn rock star bpic formula, which recent years is expandg — fally — to clu gay unprecented succs of last year’s Queen movie Bohemian Rhapsody, now the most profable bpic history, seemed to whet the mic dtry’s — and Hollywood’s — appet for the genre.

Rhapsody, which Fletcher also directed (after takg over om Bryan Sger) was able to be a jebox mil wh a celebry gay man’s story, told wh jt the right amount of gravas — and queer tragedy — to give an angle but also keep mastream dienc fortable. (That was rated PG-13 and had no gay sex helped ensure this. The film generally manag to better toe the le between the kd of overly broad sentimentaly required of all bpics and the specificy of John’s story as a gay man.