The LGBTQ+ community has made great strides in the film industry – which isn’t to say that discrimination doesn’t unfortunately still occur – and has been enjoying something of a renaissance in terms of mainstream media representation. Where LGBTQ+ characters were previously taboo and confined to the realm of ‘adult’ content, society has now progressed to the point where many people see the value of and the need to express the values of diversity and accepting within family media.
The fight for representation continues even now, and the gains the community has made should be applauded. Disney, famously popular within the community, has made commitments towards inclusion in recent years, and several of the studio’s films have included characters of various expressions and identities.
Though Disney has been criticized for various reasons – including labeling various successive characters as the ‘first’ of its openly gay characters – it should be lauded for these inclusions. As Out.com explains, Disney has been making moves to include more and more LGBTQ characters into its oeuvre. With Disney currently in a battle with Florida governor Ron DeSantis over his homophobic legislation, now’s the perfect time to support Disney’s efforts.
1. Zootopia (2016)
Zootopia, which premiered back in 2016, was one of Disney’s first attempts to include a gay couple in a major motion picture. Early on in the film, aspiring cop Judy Hopps (Ginnifer Goodwin) moves to the titular Zootopia, where her neighbors are anthropomorphic antelopes whom argue like an old married couple. As it turns out, that’s because the two are an unmarried couple. Unfortunately, just one year after the landmark Obergefell v. Hodges case which legalized gay marriage nationwide, it appeared to be too early for explicit confirmation, but the two characters are named Bucky and Pronk Oryx-Antlerson and they’re voiced by Byron Howard and Jared Bush, respectively. The fact that the two of them have hyphenated their last names could also mean that they’re the first married, gay couple in a Disney film. Hopefully Zootopia 2 can provide explicit confirmation!
2. Finding Dory (2016)
Another entry from 2016; fans may be scratching their heads and wondering who was gay in Finding Dory. Some might think Dory, who’s of course voiced by Ellen Degeneres, whom famously came out in 1997 to much controversy and fanfare, would have been the figure of representation. A lead character was perhaps too early for the company, however, and instead, Finding Dory features a shot of a pair of young women and their daughter. The three appear on screen for just three seconds and have no lines (and thus the two unnamed women never refer to each other as partners on-screen), but this background appearance caused intense controversy among more conservative viewers.
3. Beauty and the Beast (2017)
It was the “exclusively gay moment” heard around the world – or not. When Disney announced that LeFou (played by Josh Gad) would be openly gay in this live-action adaptation, there was once again much controversy. When the film finally premiered, however, LeFou’s attraction to Gaston (played by the openly gay Luke Evans) was evident but never explicitly mentioned, and the character dances with a man near the end of the film. Though Gaston and LeFou nearly received their own prequel series, the idea fizzled out, and it seems unlikely that LeFou will make a live-action comeback where he’s expressly gay.
4. Thor: Ragnarok (2017)
Disney decided to finally introduce its first bisexual character into the MCU: Valkyrie (Tessa Thompson, who has herself expressed fluid attractions, but chooses not to label herself). Valkyrie was a memorable addition to Thor’s supporting cast, and an attraction between the two has been teased before. A scene in which a woman sneaks out of Valkyrie’s room in the morning was meant to confirm Valkyrie’s sexuality. It was supposed to appear in Thor: Ragnarok, but was ultimately deleted from the final cut of the film and has not been released.
5. Avengers: Endgame (2019)
After a one year hiatus away from representation, Disney gave fans the first openly gay character in an MCU film – unfortunately, many LGBT fans found the move condescending and criticized how minor it was. In a cameo by one of the film’s co-directors, Joe Russo appears as an unnamed man credited only as ‘Grieving Man’. As Captain America leads a meeting to address the grief of the Snap, the Grieving Man briefly references mourning his husband. Suffice to say, the scene was criticized by activists, who found it to be a band-aid (calls for representation in superhero movies were heating up around by this time) for a problem that many major studios continued to perpetuate.
6. Toy Story 4 (2019)
In a move criticized as “dangerous”, Toy Story 4 featured a small moment in which two mothers interact with their child. The family once again appears in the background, and are not major characters in the film’s storyline by any means. While Lightyear underperformed, there is a Toy Story 5 on the way, which might just introduce more LGBT+ characters into the story.
7. Star Wars: The Rise of Skywalker (2019)
Star Wars: The Rise of Skywalker was controversial for several reasons. Aside from seemingly being unable to please anyone critically, the film seemed to displease both anti-gay activists and gay rights advocates alike. In fact, it could be argued that the negative reception to this moment and the moment in Avengers: Endgame made Disney rethink its approach to LGBTQ+ content – it certainly becomes far more inclusive following this moment. In a blink-and-you’ll-miss-it moment, following the defeat of the somehow-returned Emperor Palpatine (Ian McDiarmid), two women kiss (apparently named Larma D’Acy and Wrobie Tyce, though they have no lines in the film). This is the first instance of on-screen, gay representation in Star Wars, so to say fans were disappointed is an understatement – particularly as this film put the nail in the coffin for the popular ship between Finn (John Boyega) and Poe (Oscar Isaac).
8. Onward (2020)
Officer Specter, portrayed by Lena Waithe, a lesbian, became a meme in online LGBTQ+ circles. The character was Pixar’s first to be openly gay. In the film, which is set in a modern-day fantasy world, Officer Specter is a cyclops who briefly mentions her wife to the two main characters. The moment resulted in the film being banned in several countries, with the line being changed in some locales to instead be about Officer Specter’s partner’s daughter, with no reference at all to the partner’s gender.
9. Jungle Cruise (2021)
Disney attracted some heat for casting Jack Whitehall, a straight actor, as MacGregor, a character who was billed as ‘openly gay’. In Jungle Cruise itself, MacGregor speaks to Dwayne Johnson’s Frank, explaining to him that he did not get married because his “interests happily lie elsewhere.” Frank, proving to be a surprising ally for the film’s 1916 setting, proposes a toast to “elsewhere”.
10. Eternals (2021)
Eternals might not have been the most successful movie, and its sequel might not end up happening, but Phastos (Brian Tyree Henry) was one of the film’s bright spots. Henry portrays the character as the moral and emotional center of the team, and he’s one of the best-defined and most developed characters in the sometimes-overstuffed movie. Phastos is depicted as an immortal crafted by the Celestials to help human advancement, but he becomes disillusioned with his mission after humanity discovers and proces to use nuclear weapons in World War II. By the modern day, however, Phastos’ husband (Haaz Sleiman), Ben, has helped Phastos regain faith in humanity. The two also have a son, Jack (Esai Daniel Cross), and all live a very happy life together. It’s a shame that the pandemic, and Eternals‘ under performance, means that the character may not reappear for a while.
11. Cruella (2021)
The film, which stars Emma Stone as its titular villainess, also stars John McCrea as the flamboyant, fashion-loving Artie. The character is the height of camp, and considers “normal” to be the worst insult he might be called. With his gender nonconformity, Artie also presents some of the more stereotypical aspects of a gay villain, but he’s no antagonist: an ally of Cruella, Artie helps the character throughout the story and sympathizes with her, despite public perceptions.
12. Doctor Strange in the Multiverse of Madness (2022)
Comics have been LGBTQ+ friendly for decades, but superhero films are only just now catching up. Doctor Strange in the Multiverse of Madness features the MCU’s most prominent LGBTQ+ character yet: America Chavez (Xochitl Gomez). The character serves as the film’s third most-important character behind Marvel veterans Doctor Strange (Benedict Cumberbatch) and the Scarlet Witch (Elizabeth Olsen). America is out and proud as a lesbian in the comics, and though it’s never mentioned in the film itself, her character does sport a pride pin throughout the movie. Her mothers are also important characters in her backstory – and the character is currently searching the multiverse for them. With America likely to reappear in the speculated Young Avengers MCU project, perhaps she’ll get a love interest before long.
13. Lightyear (2022)
A spin-off of Toy Story, Lightyear was an experimental project. Centering around the fictional film that inspired the Buzz Lightyear action figure (voiced in the Toy Story films by Tim Allen), the film instead presents Buzz Lightyear as a flesh-and-blood human (voiced by Chris Evans) on a mission to the stars. One of his crewmates is Hawthorne (Uzo Aduba), who kisses her wife as a greeting for about three seconds, on-screen. That chaste kiss was enough to get the film banned in at least 14 countries, and was cut or altered in a few territories. Unfortunately, Lightyear didn’t do too well at the box office, with some crediting the film’s under performance to the same-sex kiss.
14. Strange World (2022)
Strange World, unfortunately, appears to be the culmination of Disney’s pandemic era. The film severely under performed, with many even unaware that the film had hit theaters (although some once again point to the film’s LGBTQ+ representation). While previous attempts at representation were in the background and involved only adult characters in committed relationships, Disney decided to be audacious here. The film is about a family of adventurers, including grandson Ethan (Jaboukie Young-White). Ethan has a crush on another boy, and in a sweet moment, Ethan’s father (Jake Gyllenhaal) is embarrassing as only family members can be when he gets to meet his son’s crush.
15. Black Panther: Wakanda Forever (2021)
Black Panther: Wakanda Forever introduces audiences to Aneka (Michaela Coel), a member of the Dora Milaje, the king’s bodyguards. Aneka is a popular character in the comics, where she has openly been married to fellow Dora Milaje Ayo. Ayo herself also appears in the film, where she’s portrayed by Florence Kasumba. Aneka briefly kisses Ayo on the forehead in the film, but their relationship has yet to be remarked upon in depth. Hopefully the upcoming Wakanda television show on Disney+ explores more of their relationship.
While Disney now has more than a handful of LGBTQ characters up its sleeve, there’s still far more work to be done. Though superheroes are intended to inspire people to be the best that they can be, there’s still some resistance to including LGBTQ representation in superhero media.
Ultimately, representation in media like Disney is going to help LGBTQ+ children accept their identities – all too often, it’s children who pay for bigotry. When activists hope that Disney will reveal that a major character such as Elsa as gay, they’re hoping to normalize the community and make it easier for future generations to live their authentic life. Disney can do great good by continuing, and expanding, its efforts in representation.