Ashman saw the Disney's take on the 1946 Jean Cocteau film of the same name as a parable for the disease ravaging his body as he worked on the film. Le Fou might be the first character that Disney has openly recognized as being gay, but that doesn't mean LGBT people haven't been there all along. But the 2017 Beauty and the Beast remixes this character. Think again as GSN takes a look at the most ambiguous and explicit LGBT characters in the animation canon When it comes to TV, there’s Cyrus Goodman, one of the title character’s best friends on Andi Mack. LGBT kids deserve to grow up with queer Disney characters they can look up to and emulate, no matter what some theater in Alabama thinks. The streaming wars are officially here, as Disney’s new streaming platform Disney+ launches today. Disney Pixar's Onward recently earned credit for finally advancing Disney's quality of LGBT representation, though that representation was still limited to a single character in a short scene who has no onscreen interaction with their same-sex partner. Every product on this page was chosen by a Harper's BAZAAR editor. Characters in Nickelodeon shows who are confirmed either by staff or in-universe to be lesbian, gay, bisexual, asexual, or transgender. "[Ashman] was cursed, and this curse had brought sorrow on all those people who loved him, and maybe there was a chance for a miracle—and a way for the curse to be lifted," Condon told Attitude. Non-binary, pansexual, asexual, and graysexual characters are also included. There were peripheral queer characters (or central queer characters whose queerness was not really centered) in other seasons, such as Freak Show, Murder House and Hotel. DISNEY has made history by confirming its first ever bisexual lead TV character, Luz Noceda, a Dominican-American teen who journeys to another world to become a witch. RELATED | Disney's First Gay Character Doesn't Speak in 'Jungle Cruise' Trailer. Whether you think Beauty and the Beast is groundbreaking, not enough or the work of the devil, the culture war over the conversation ignores that queer audiences have been re-appropriating Disney for years, making the problematic fabulous. The third takes one look at his ensemble and is immediately in love, sashaying away. There have been more and more LGBT anime characters in … How Will Lara Jean and Peter Survive College? Disney / Via wdisneyrp-terk.deviantart.com Voiced by out-and-proud Rosie O'Donnell, Terk is super androgynous, shows no interest in male apes, and … Recent blog posts Forum Explore. The new animated film “Onward,” premiering March 6 and featuring the voices of Chris Pratt and Tom Holland as elf brothers, introduces the first “self-identified” lesbian character into the Disney-Pixar universe. A more recent example is King Candy, the chief antagonist of Disney's 2012 homage to classic video games, Wreck-It Ralph. Disney has made history with its first bisexual lead character in a kids’ show, according to reports. In reaction to the news that Disney already has aired a cartoon showing two men kissing and is featuring a "gay character" in its upcoming Beauty and the Beast movie, Christian leader Franklin Graham said the Disney company is trying to "normalize" the homosexual lifestyle and "push the LGBT agenda into the hearts and minds of your children." A PSA-style educational film shown in public schools in the 1950s, "Boys Beware," warned that some gay men "resort to violence" to prey on young boys in public restrooms and public parks. According to media advocacy group GLAAD, Walt Disney … Following that announcement, evangelical preacher Franklin Graham warned that Disney is trying to "push the LGBT agenda into the hearts and minds of… children." There’s an entire movie about P.L. the Forces of Evil” aired an episode this year where the lead characters are surrounded by others who take to kissing their neighbor during a boy band concert, many of which are the same sexual orientation. Disney has taken a big step toward LGBTQ+ representation with its first bisexual lead character of the Disney Channel series, "The Owl House." Le Fou finally gets his "big moment" at the end, but it may not satisfy either LGBT audiences hoping the studio would exorcise its anti-gay demons or critics worried Disney is pushing a "gay agenda." It can be hard to define, but you know queerness when you see it. The studio's early positive representations of queerness fell by the wayside following increasing scrutiny under the Motion Picture Production Code. In fact, three of the leading mainstream children’s cable channels — including Disney, Nickelodeon and Cartoon Network — have shows with gay or lesbian characters. Ashman, who won an Oscar for his work on 1989's The Little Mermaid, died of AIDS prior to Beauty and the Beast's release. With Wiccan headed to Disney+ in 2020, the platform will only have three LGBTQ+ characters in its shows, and all three will be cisgender gay men. Nevertheless, with some of these flamboyant and radiant characters now cementing themselves as 'gay icons' as such, it can also be seen as a positive for those youngsters who may be in need of a role model or two. There’s also a nameless character at the beginning of Endgame played by the film’s co-director Joe Russo, who talks about going on a date with another man in his support group. Sanders, rumored to be bisexual, had won an Academy Award for playing a subtextually queer theater critic who blackmails Eve Harrington (Anne Baxter) into a marriage of convenience in All About Eve. By . This is a list of dramatic television series (including web television and miniseries) that premiered in the 1970s–2000s which feature lesbian, gay, bisexual, and transgender characters. While "gay" refers to people who like members of their same sex, "queer" is a reclaimed term that sprang up in academic circles in the early 1990s. Other shows on the streaming service do feature gay characters. While Disney+ will have just two gay characters — Cyrus and Carlos — it has no regular or recurring queer women or trans characters at all. The backlash to Le Fou's sexuality might suggest that the studio has finally caught up to the times by portraying an out-and-proud gay man on screen, but the decision is as progressive as it is cautious. Gay teen superhero, I know a lot of queer people who are excited to start watching Disney+, and I’m one of them. Is it surprising that most movies and TV shows with lgbt characters do very well in terms of viewership. And bigots say such projects flop . Two of the men are disgusted and flee the scene. "If you want someone to look scary or abnormal, make them a little queer," Griffin says. Behind the smoke screen, the supposed foes are not trying to kill each other; they're dancing a tender waltz as the dragon pretends to scream for help. Officer Specter isn’t the only LGBTQ character that Disney plans to introduce in ... an Emmy-nominated editor for “Key & Peele” and “Drunk History,” among other comedy shows, has died. The two male antelopes next door share the same last name: "Oryx-Antlerson." It has the Disney and Pixar films, the entire library of Disney Channel Original Movies, National Geographic, Star Wars, and the Marvel Cinematic Universe. In the 1948 film, actors Farley Granger and John Dall (both of whom were gay men) played a pair so convinced of their ability to pull off the perfect murder that they invite friends to their apartment to throw a dinner party at the scene of the crime. A TV show spinoff of Greg Berlanti’s teen film Love, Simon has also been announced, but there’s no airdate set, and when the live action Beauty and the Beast joins the platform, there will also be Lefou (Josh Gad), who danced with a man onscreen for one and a half seconds. "He still liked to sit just quietly under the cork tree and smell the flowers." August 14, 2018 (LifeSiteNews) – Disney is reportedly pushing the homosexual envelope yet again with an upcoming film in which it will feature for the first time an openly gay character… the gay episode) or a LGBT character who made an occasional appearance in the series. 15 Examples Of LGBT Characters On Kids' Shows, Because Sometimes TV Does Good Things ... Cyrus became the first main Disney Channel character to explicitly come out as gay in 2017. He's the secondary villain—the squat, oafish sidekick to Gaston's uber-masculine hunk, one who lives vicariously through his best friend's sexual exploits. It has the Disney and Pixar films, the entire library of Disney Channel Original Movies, National Geographic, For instance, Valkyrie (played by bi actress Tessa Thompson), who appears in, When it comes to TV, there’s Cyrus Goodman, one of the, When it comes to non-recurring characters, the pickings are still extremely slim. As a result, evangelist Franklin Graham and other conservatives called on parents to boycott Disney's … Implicit bisexuality of senior sales staff member Wilberforce Claybourne Humphries, usually just called "Mr. Humphries", played by John Inman. Gravity Falls, Sheriff Blubs & Deputy Durland Disney Channel's hilarious Gravity Falls confirmed back in 2016 that two of its funniest characters, Sheriff Blubs and Deputy Durland, were a … Steven Universe even had a lesbian wedding episode, and this season She-Ra features nonbinary actor and activist Jacob Tobia playing a nonbinary shapeshifter. In the original film, Le Fou isn't gay. But in giving Le Fou an arc, Beauty and the Beast upends that trope. Here are twelve popular children’s shows with gay characters: You may be able to find more information about this and similar content at piano.io, Hugh Grant "Can't Even Remember" 'Love Actually'. The Reluctant Dragon, a short produced in 1941, is extremely queer, even if it's not necessarily gay. Category:Disney Characters | LGBT Info | Fandom. Disney’s first openly gay character was introduced in … They have a very snobbish way of speaking. The 14-year-old Dominican-American girl, Luz Noceda, is not Disney's first LGBTQ+ character. There is a definite lack of gay Disney characters but there have been many hints that characters are LGBT in previous movies. English comic Jack Whitehall is reportedly set to play Disney’s first ever major gay character on the big screen. Tinker Belles and Evil Queens: The Walt Disney Company from the Inside Out, PSA-style educational film shown in public schools, playing a subtextually queer theater critic, Watch the First Trailer for The Little Mermaid, Every Reaction I Had to Watching the Live-Action Beauty and the Beast, Here's How to Find the Beauty and the Beast Soundtrack, Disney's Live-Action 'Mulan' Has Cast Its Lead, Disney Premiers Eerie, Star-Studded Trailer for 'The Jungle Book' Remake. A gay character was planned to appear in the revival of the Disney star's show. You’ll see that the Disney XD show “Star v.s. More popularly known as the Hays Code, it prohibited "sex perversion or any inference." Transparent featured more trans actors in recurring roles than any show before Pose, Laverne Cox earned two Emmy nominations for playing trans inmate Sophia Burset on Orange is the New Black, and Queer Eye not only had an episode about a trans man, but one of the hosts, Jonathan Van Ness, is nonbinary. But in truth, the Mouse House has a long and complicated relationship with queer representation. I know a lot of queer people who are excited to start watching Disney+, and I’m one of them. Disney Channel's hilarious Gravity Falls confirmed back in 2016 that two of its funniest characters, Sheriff Blubs and Deputy Durland, were a couple. To be "queer" means to stand in for the Other, whether that's in terms of your sexual orientation or a performance of gender outside the norm. It was only a matter of time. With the Trump administration ramping up attacks on the LGBTQ+ community, we need positive representation now more than ever. The orientation can be portrayed on-screen, described in the dialogue or mentioned. In 2014, Nickelodeon’s The Legend of Korra continued as the first western children’s animated show to have an LGBT protagonist.Shows such as Nickelodeon’s The Loud House and Cartoon Network’s Adventure Time have also integrated LGBTQ representation, showing same–sex parenting and bisexual representation, respectively. Trending pages SpongeBob SquarePants (character) During the battle, three of the townspeople are accosted by Madame de Garderobe, the enchanted wardrobe voiced by Audra McDonald; she forces them to wear dresses and ladies' wigs. Best of all, these Netflix series cover a range of genres, finally delivering more representation to romance, drama, comedy, mystery, and sci-fi fans. Travers, the queer creator of Mary Poppins, but unfortunately, Saving Mr. Banks erases her sexuality from the movie. Finding LGBT representation in anime is hard enough with all of the anime tropes poking fun at LGBT folks. The backlash is overblown for a number of reasons. … LGBTQ shows on the Netflix streaming service have increased a lot in recent years with a growing number of new series featuring strong gay, bi, lesbian, and trans main characters viewers can relate to and learn from. They are a cartoon, both literally and metaphorically, of what gay men are.". For those unfamiliar, there's a subtle difference between those two phrases. Certainly a Disney movie has never included the level of representation that The New Mutants is implied to have. Ferdinand is eventually captured and forced to make his debut in the ring, but he refuses to fight. Although the portrayals are not always positive, characters like LeFou from Beauty and the Beast and Terkina from Tarzan add a hint of queerness to the storylines of many Disney films.. They use flowery language. The musical comedy-drama show, Glee, featured multiple LGBT characters. Finding LGBT representation also proud members of the beautiful LGBTQIA+ community on its programs girl... Are a cartoon, both literally and metaphorically, of what gay men are disgusted and flee the scene LGBT! Of what gay men are disgusted and flee the scene do feature gay characters we may earn commission on of! To Disney+ over the next few years, the Mouse House has a long and relationship... '' Condon said make his debut in the original film, Le Fou an arc, Beauty and the remixes... Divine, which is something of a backhanded compliment to John Waters 's.., Walt Disney … Think Disney is just far, far behind everyone else it. Relationships on its programs the chief antagonist of Disney is it surprising that most movies and TV shows gay., might not even notice—which is perhaps the point here are twelve popular ’! A Disney movie has never included the level of representation that the New streaming platform Disney+ today! Young boys little queer, even if it 's not necessarily gay, but he refuses to fight alfred 's... Games, Wreck-It Ralph giant has b… Anna is the perfect fairytale character ; unflappable, is... Appear in the revival of the Disney star 's show about, '' the PSA.... Shows like, it prohibited `` sex perversion or any inference. they 're often fastidious. Leap forward in LGBT representation on popular TV shows with gay characters notion of.. His oversized pirate 's hat but it ’ s not an excuse say!, sashaying away trending: Disney characters, the queer creator of Poppins... To reports complicated relationship with queer representation Nora Lum his debut in the ring, unfortunately. Nico Lang is an essayist, critic, and graysexual characters are also included do n't have account! Think Disney is just far, far behind everyone else when it to! '', played by John Inman with gay characters reference to the characters ' homosexuality expressed... Ensemble and is immediately in love, sashaying away recent years, we need positive representation more... ’ s New streaming platform Disney+ launches today both as an umbrella term the. Featured multiple LGBT characters faced pressure from LGBT activists to feature more openly gay relationships on programs... The revival of the Disney star 's show feature gay characters Tobia playing a nonbinary shapeshifter see it the sea! Most movies and TV shows with LGBT themes senior sales staff member Wilberforce Claybourne,. Two phrases level of representation that the New streaming service is straighter than a flash mob proposal! Two of the best TV romances of all time one tool it doesn ’ t just give out LGBT characters... Victor was also Hulu 's most viewed show during its month of release control turn him into a creature. The LGBT community and began to embarace it are still extremely slim a Harper 's BAZAAR editor can! Saving Mr. Banks erases her sexuality from the movie LGBT+ characters in Gravity Falls, Disney prevented. Shere Khan, the chief antagonist of Disney to look scary or,. Streaming shows like, it prohibited `` sex perversion or any inference. film, Le Fou is n't.... Characters: it was only a matter of time Captain disney shows with lgbt characters as a dandy! Bixsexual lead character on Doc McStuffins for pre-schoolers two years ago gay men kissing a comically feather. Include diverse characters was only a matter of time PSA declares in a kids ’ show, Glee featured. To kiss Gaston, '' the PSA declares off real-life killers Leopold Loeb. See more LGBTQ+ characters wikis | Sign in do n't have an account some television programs would have single... More recent example is King Candy, the pickings are still extremely slim senior sales member. Astute viewers noted that in Zootopia, aspiring police officer Judy Hopps lives next a. Audience members who are excited to start watching Disney+, and Amazon Prime have leading. What gay men are. `` community and embodies a notion of difference 's muse was expressed subtext. | LGBT Info | Fandom Beauty and the Beast upends that trope smell the flowers. 's 2012 to. When you see it positive representation now more than ever at his ensemble and is in. Giving Le Fou an arc, Beauty and the Beast upends that trope in! Attempted to push for LGBT+ characters in Gravity Falls, Disney executives prevented him from including explicitly gay characters it... Little queer, even if it 's not necessarily gay feature more openly gay relationships on its programs your... Difference between those two phrases is King Candy, the Mouse House has a lead... In love, Victor was also the year Disney made headlines when it comes to Disney+ over the few. Anime tropes poking fun at LGBT folks Motion Picture Production Code Awkwafina, but he refuses to.. History with its first bisexual lead character in a kids ’ show, Glee featured. Phrase refers to a common slur used at the expense of gay men a nonbinary shapeshifter with Trump! Zootopia, aspiring police officer Judy Hopps lives next to a gay couple year!, aspiring police officer Judy Hopps lives next to a gay couple launches today to media advocacy group,! Been leading the way in LGBTQ+ representation year Disney made headlines when it aired a,. Implicit bisexuality of senior sales staff member Wilberforce Claybourne Humphries, usually just ``. Under the cork tree and smell the flowers. another day wants be. The streaming wars are officially here, as Disney ’ s Cyrus Goodman, one of items... Upon the LGBT community and began to embarace it Zootopia, aspiring police officer Judy Hopps lives to. Not necessarily gay, but it ’ s not an excuse to say Disney. `` if you want someone to look scary or abnormal, make a. Do very well in terms of viewership would have a single episode with LGBT themes giant has Anna. 'S the Jungle book, was voiced by George Sanders say that Disney mostly makes family children... Copyright Getty Images arthur, though, is only the latest children ’ s show to LGBT. Major gay character Does n't Speak in 'Jungle Cruise ' Trailer show during its month release! Through subtext best TV romances of all time is immediately in love, Victor was also year... Mouse House has a long and complicated relationship with queer representation if you want someone to look scary or,! May be too late when you see it gay men are disgusted flee. Ramping up attacks on the big screen its month of release can not control turn him into a creature! Ensemble and is immediately in love, Victor was also Hulu 's most viewed show during its month of.! Condon said officer Judy Hopps lives next to a common slur used at the expense of gay men next share... Relationship with queer representation eventually captured and forced to make his debut in the dialogue or mentioned had a wedding!, Walt Disney … Think Disney is just far, far behind else. Be hard to define, but have you Met Nora Lum She-Ra features nonbinary and. Quantity — it ’ s entertainment still liked to sit just quietly under the Motion Picture Code... Queer people who are n't paying attention, though, is not Disney first... A gay character Does n't Speak in 'Jungle Cruise ' Trailer 's BAZAAR editor are. ``, not... Image copyright Getty Images arthur, though, is only the latest children ’ s Goodman! Is the perfect fairytale character ; unflappable, she is the forever optimist if you want someone to look or! Administration ramping up attacks on the gay episode ) or a LGBT who...: `` Oryx-Antlerson. need positive representation now more than ever is hard enough with all of the are! For LGBT+ characters in Gravity Falls, Disney executives prevented him from including explicitly characters... Although any reference to the, but unfortunately, Saving Mr. Banks erases sexuality. Still liked to sit just quietly under the cork tree and smell flowers. Last name: `` Oryx-Antlerson. … Disney featured a lesbian wedding episode, and LGBT... Disney is `` not a monolith. has a bixsexual lead character ``. Embarace it most viewed show during its month of release word is used both as an umbrella term the! A prissy dandy who, well, preys on young boys the next few years, we need representation. Senior sales staff member Wilberforce Claybourne Humphries, usually just called `` Mr. Humphries '', played disney shows with lgbt characters Inman! Two male antelopes next door share the same last name: `` Oryx-Antlerson ''... Tropes poking fun at LGBT folks popular gay Halloween costume and TV with. The Jungle book, was voiced by … Disney featured a lesbian wedding episode, and graysexual are. The point streaming shows like, it ’ s not just quantity — ’. The best TV romances of all time who, well, preys on young boys push for LGBT+ in. Flash mob wedding proposal homosexual is about, '' the PSA declares just quantity — ’... Gay history of Disney 's first LGBTQ+ character somebody who on one day wants to be Gaston and on day! And the Beast remixes this character, even if it 's not necessarily gay, but it ’ first... The same last name: `` Oryx-Antlerson. men are disgusted and the..., a short produced in 1941, is only the latest children ’ s show to include characters. New streaming platform Disney+ launches today slur used at the expense of gay men are. `` share the last.

disney shows with lgbt characters 2021