Disney reportedly adds same-sex kiss back into Lightyear amid “Don’t Say Gay” controversy
A same-sex kiss between Uzo Aduba's Hawthorne and her partner has reportedly been restored to the Chris Evans-starring film
Aux News Lightyear
Disney’s history with LGBTQIA+ issues has been a decidedly rocky one over the years—even in the more modern era, when the company has embraced “representation” in its public messaging, and on the edges of its cinematic output, but clearly balked at allowing same-sex affection to be a regular part of its film-making style in the way heterosexual romance has been for the better part of a century.
That reticence to put its money where its mouse-mouth is was brought into harsh exposure earlier this month, when animators at the company—angered over CEO Bob Chapek’s hesitation to condemn Florida’s oncoming “Don’t Say Gay” bill—revealed that “overtly gay affection” had been removed from a number of films produced at Disney subsidiary Pixar. (Sadly, no details of which scenes and films were affected has been released; we’d love to have a glimpse at what the company’s filmography could have looked like under less stringent Disney control.)
Now, Variety reports on at least one instance of Disney re-inserting a same-sex kiss into its work, as sources have revealed that a cut kiss from the upcoming Lightyear has now been restored. Specifically, a kiss between Hawthorne, one of Buzz’s fellow astronauts (played by Uzo Aduba), and her partner has been put back into the film. Variety notes that Hawthorne’s LGBTQIA+ status was always intended to be in the film, but that in a previous version, the studio had defaulted to its usual “It’s okay to talk about being gay, but not to show it on screen” attitude. (See also Onward, another Pixar film that included verbal mentions of a same-sex relationship for a secondary character, without being willing to show it on screen.)
Chapek issued an apology to employees for his treatment of the proposed Florida legislation last week, condemning it as a “challenge to basic human rights” and pledging to step up the company’s support for LGBTQIA+ causes. Critics at the company, though, have continued to organize protest efforts, including a proposed series of walkouts, on the grounds that, as nice as Chapek’s apology was, it still wasn’t enough to reverse years of the company paying only lip service to the cause.
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I was actually starting to have fun playing “Spot where they made the animators take the gay kiss out.”
There allegedly a few frames where you can still see traces of Pumbaa’s Prince Albert.
Sorry, Bob, you’re gonna have to find a lot more gay kisses to edit into the Disney oeuvre if you ever want to be un-cancelled.
They’ll have to go back pretty far – I’m thinking they’ll need to take out at least a couple of the Mary Poppins makeout scenes between Dick van Dyke and David Tomlinson from the ol’ Disney Vault.
Eww — why David Tomlinson?Couldn’t Dick van Dyke make out with some buff fellow chimneysweeps instead?
…Which I suspect van Dyke would have done if it was brought up to him. He was surprisingly gay-tolerant for a Nice Midwestern Boy even during the Sixties.
Wait, they ANIMATED it and then they CUT IT? Isn’t it expensive to make that footage? Are there just alternate gay cuts on someone’s computer?
That’s nothing. They animated 75% of AN ENTIRE MOVIE and then killed the whole thing, in part because it was too gay.
https://www.themarysue.com/disney-fought-same-sex-kiss-nimona/
That would never have happened if it had been a Disney production from start to finish. In that they would never have started to make the movie mainly.
For what it’s worth, they inherited partially made Nimona from the Fox acquisition; Disney didn’t animate it. While I’m certain the queer content didn’t help, it’s at least as likely it would have gotten scrubbed regardless. Disney is ridiculously strict regarding house style and quality of its animated features.
Yeah, I’ve got loads of them on my home computer
From Pixar and Disney special features, there’s a lot of back and forth and tinkering in their animation process even without the “corporate won’t let us do it” element. Coco even has a maybe 85% animated song that got cut. It’s not that weird that Pixar animators might think they could finally sneak in a kiss and it was worth the manpower for probably at most a 30 second shot.
Unless they’re really crunched for storage, I wouldn’t be surprised if Pixar (and other computer animation studios) hang on to that data, if at least to have “deleted scenes” extras on the Blu-Ray. I think it’s unlikely that scenes of same-sex affection would end up on the “special edition” home video release, but I would bet the director or someone else has it on a thumb drive somewhere.
You Just Can’t Win ™. You cut out a gay kiss. You put the gay kiss back in.May as well not animate gay kisses to be cut at all.
Or may as well, so you can shame Disney Corporate into being more, you know, inclusive.
I wasn’t aware Disney had ever even paid lip service to inclusivity. Let’s take things one step at a time. They’re still struggling to understand the concept of female characters having agency.
Yes, you want her
Look at her, you know you do
It’s possible she wants you, too
There is one way to ask her
It don’t take a word
Not a single word
Go on and kiss the girl
“We were originally going to play it safe and just give the entire world the China cut, but we need a PR bump”
I’m pretty sure you’re right there.
Oh Pixar, remember when you refused to do sequel except for the toy story 2-3 because Disney forced you too?
Good first step. Now bring back “Nimona”.
I have it on good authority that the evil Emperor Zurg’s raw dogging scene remains central to the film.
Just imagine how much gay stuff the animators are going to FLOOD their movies with, just to DARE the execs to tell them to take it out.
The fall of Disney.
Many seem to be under the impression that this what the general populace wants because the LGBT lobby is the most vocal and has most of the media under their thumb.
Well, the thing is, the average joe doesn’t have to put themselves out there for ridicule in order to NOT pay to see a movie and that’s exactly what’s going to happen.
Disney was dumb for even MAKING such a scene aimed at kids and they opened themselves up to these questions by doing so.
I know what the aim is. Influence children to be gay and therefore none of this matters. Otherwise, what? Are they simply reinforcing gay love and affection for LGBT youth? BS.
One step closer to full penetration
Okay but can we get the No Way Home cut restored where the three Spider-men fuck? Because is it even gay or just multiverses masturbation? I want to see them kiss and More!
I like how you capitalized more.
One of my favorite movie moments is when Tobey Maguire woke up and looked at himself in the mirror in the first Spiderman movie. That was filmed long before we expected actors to be so buff, and his muscle bulges were spectacular for the time (and still!) Just, wow. Tobey played gay in “Wonder Boys,” so I kinda twisted the stories together and convinced myself that the shirtless, buff Spiderman was also a gay man. I’ve been in love with him ever since.
I’ll admit that scene was one of the first times I realized I was bi. That and Brad Pitt in Troy
all 3 of the main stars from “wonder boys” went on to play marvel characters-Michael Douglas (the original ant-man, hank pym), RDJ (Iron Man), Maguire (Spider Man.)
I think it only counts as multiverse masturbation if they’re much more clearly multiple versions of the same Peter Parker (in other words, played by the same actor), as opposed to alternate Peters Parker.
That’s the “Spider-Verse After Dark” cut — Sony’s negotiating with Skinemax to release that as we speak.
With great Power Top comes great responsibility.
If they fuck they’ll explode in a beam of light. I’m 100% certain TimeCop rules apply.
Prediction: it’s gonna be women kissing for the next two decades because that’s less “ooky” for the more conservative parts of their audiences.
Yeah, even though conservative men might say ALL gay homosexuality is bad, they like lesbians, (if theyre feminine and hot.) they accept that.
No bet, Peewee!
Yawn. Call me when they add back the sex scene that depicts full penetration.
I hope it was The Little Mermaid. I’ve always wondered how mer-sex works.
I was afraid that was it. 🙁
Somehow worse.
Finally, bigotry is solved.
Them: Same sex kiss…Me: Ooh?Them: Lesbians.Me: Oh.
Release the Tom of Finland inspired Buzz concept art you cowards
Pink washed damage control. Nice.
Keep holding their feet to the fire. This smells like “Doing the bare minimum” Acti-Blizzard actions.
I don’t know if he said it first, but Red Letter Media’s Mike Stoklasa referred to Disney’s tossing-a-hot-potato approach to gay representation as “passive-progressive” — they want the goodie points for it, but not to actually show it because they’re scared of backlash from Right Wing parents.Some moron on Reddit recently got mad at me for talking about gay representation on STAR TREK: DISCOVERY being one of the few good things about the series, saying “Everyone does it now, it’s no longer ‘woke’!” After I cited examples disproving his point he called me “crazy” and blocked me.Asshole.
LOL I knew Disney was capable of some cynical pandering bullshit but adding back cut footage just to prove they’re a “friend of the gays” despite their silence over this idiotic and despicable law? That’s something else. I hope they unironically point it out as if no one what they just did, just gaslight everyone.
Already picturing the conservative rage and boycotts.