The First Disney Gay
For those that don't know me, I was born and raised in Central Florida, which means I was used to having a corporate overlord from a very young age. Kids that grew up in Orlando in the 80's and 90's had visiting Walt Disney World as a very high priority, and if your parents had an annual pass, you were high up on the playground food chain. For me, my mother worked and still is working, at Disney World for over twenty-five years, with a main gate pass for the whole family. A lot of my childhood milestones, like my first kiss, my 16th birthday, and my high school graduation, were all celebrated or took place at the parks. I'm far from the only one; for nearly a century, the Disney brand has been an enormous influence, and reflection, of American culture, and the company's history of great artistic achievements and outrageous controversies could fill volumes from dozens of different perspectives. Still, I stand at a pretty unique vantage point, growing up practically inside Disney's flagship theme park complex in the '90s and early 2000s, to analyze the Walt Disney Company's evolving relationship with the LGBT community, and how it really hasn't gotten any better.
In the Beginning
I won't spend too much time talking about what the Walt Disney Company was like at the top back in the day; everyone knows its namesake, Walt Disney, a figure who courts nostalgia and controversy in equal measure. As a very typical man of the early 20th century, Walt Disney had social, religious, political, and racial views that were very typical for 1950s White America. What's important for our discussion is the perception he left behind; that Disney means family-friendly. It means wholesome Americana and a very white-washed nostalgia with generous helpings of fairy tale whimsy. Let us not kid ourselves; for the vast majority of you, you're either still a fan of the Disney company or you've become very jaded and cynical towards them, or you're like me, and you vacillate between the two. You probably even have a favorite Disney movie. And, if you're part of the LGBT community, odds are you have a strong sense of attachment to the Disney brand, or you have strong opinions on the company period. Why is that? Well, there are a lot of reasons why, but in particular for the millennial and zoomer generation: it's what we were raised on. And whether you're like I, and Gaston, Hercules, and Beast left a rather strong impression on you, you wanted to be a princess regardless if you were AFAB or not, or you really resonate with songs like "Let It Go," Disney's movies have been a powerful avenue of escapism for gay, lesbian, bi, trans, or in general queer kids that might have needed it through a difficult adolescence. Unfortunately, Disney's corporate minions have taken notice.
Gay Days
When I was growing up, I was blissfully unaware of Disney's first actual attempt at pandering to the LGBT base, Disney Gay Days. Back in the late 90s, Disney Gay Days was an unofficial celebration that coincided with the beginning of Pride Month, the first weekend of June. As far as I know, this was begun by an independent organization for members of LGBT and gay couples to enjoy the parks, and the company tacitly allowed it, and happily took the money from it. I never attended; growing up in a religious and conservative household, we were always conveniently out of town for the event. Of course, I did notice when I started working at Disney myself- I noticed the steadily growing supply of rainbow-coated merchandise that cropped up every June, and all without any official recognition of the Gay Days celebration. I'm sure this pattern is all too familiar to us now.
The First Disney Gay
No, I didn't make a typo in the title of this blog post. We all know how ridiculous this has gotten, and Disney's constant press releases of creating the first official gay Disney character, be it Le Fou, Specter from Onward, or the countless unnamed lesbian and gay couples in recent animated movies from Disney that can be oh so conveniently edited out for Chinese and Middle Eastern releases. Did you know that they count two seconds of a lesbian couple in Toy Story 4 as one of their trailblazing firsts? These aren't characters, is my point. They're props. Specter from Onward, a lesbian centaur police officer, has two scenes, and Le Fou- which is an insult more than anything, given his name literally translates to "the fool," has his homosexuality treated as a half-baked gag, with three seconds of him in the arms of a man before he's quickly rushed off stage. I'd write about the others, but they are literally in the background and have no personalities, lines, or even names to speak of. The first actual character, if I'm being generous, is Ethan Clade, one of the main characters from Disney's recent box office dud, Strange World. Naturally, the male love interest of Ethan shows up in exactly two scenes, and Ethan himself exhibits no personality to make him in any way memorable. This is why I often get annoyed with demands for representation- not because I think members of the community are making too much of a fuss, but because demanding representation gets us this. Flat, interchangeable characters that have no soul to them, and have every potential quirk, personality flaw, or indeed personality aspect at all, sanded down to be as unoffensive as possible. I should mention that if you do like Strange World, more power to you- but I think that LGBT audiences should ask for, and deserve, better.
What Should Disney Do?
At the end of the day, Disney does need the support of the LGBT community. Still, they seem terribly adverse to doing anything meaningful to actually earn it, at least as far as their creative endeavors are concerned. I have seen many well-meaning people, be they Disney fans or otherwise, feel compelled to support Disney's films if there is any mention of a gay, lesbian, or otherwise queer character, and will vociferously defend what are simply not very good products. We should demand much more than Le Fou, or even Ethan Clade. We should expect quality in the writing, and if we are not being given that, we should be taking our money elsewhere. This is where supporting LGBT creators is crucial- if you find a storyteller or artist that's showing the world something new and bold, that is where your support should be given- just as Anton Ego said- and naturally, I have memorized every word from Ratatouille as I have from practically every Disney or Pixar movie- "The world is often unkind to new talent, new creations. The new needs friends." Disney is not giving us anything new. An easily edited-out lesbian kiss in Rise of Skywalker is not new, it's cowardice. And until Disney decides that they can afford to be brave on our behalf, find new and better stories elsewhere.