We see gay characters on TV and in the movies more and more these days, but they've been noticeably absent from one genre: children's movies. It might not seem like a big deal, but when this is how kids are coming to terms with their identities, it really matters that we're giving them characters they can relate to.
Finally, it's happening - and in the live-action rendition ofBeauty and the Beast, no less. The sexy Dan Stevens stars as the Beast alongside Emma Watson as Belle, but it's Gaston's henchman LeFou (played by Josh Gad) that piques our interest. He ends up falling for Gaston (Luke Evans) himself, though that character may be a terrible person, he is very sexy:
Though we know of LeFou's devotion to his boss (just check out thisclip of him singing about Gastonfor proof), this is a new addition to the 1991 cartoon. And boy oh boy, are we glad. Here's what Bill Condon said in a recent interview with Attitude:
LeFou is somebody who on one day wants to be Gaston and on another day wants to kiss Gaston. Hes confused about what he wants. Its somebody whos just realizing that he has these feelings. And Josh makes something really subtle and delicious out of it.
Josh is, was, and will always be a treasure, so I imagine he did a fabulous job in the role. In the same interview, Emma Watson said that there's an underlying queer sensibility to her relationship with Beast; both characters are shunned by their communities for being different. Considering that Emma brought Gloria Steinem herself to the screening and Gloria signed off on the role as feminist, it would seem that Disney is breaking all sorts of impressive ground.
One thing is for sure: I'm 50 shades of excited to see this movie. And not just because I named my goldfish after Belle when I was 5.
