Disney’s First Openly Gay Character
Attitude Magazine is reporting Josh Gad portraying LeFou in the upcoming live-action version of Beauty and the Beast will be Disney‘s first openly gay character. The film also stars Emma Watson as Belle, Dan Stevens as the Beast and Luke Evans as Gaston.
Attitude‘s editor-in-chief Matt Cain says in the upcoming April issue, “By representing same-sex attraction in this short but explicitly gay scene, the studio is sending out a message that this is normal and natural—and this is a message that will be heard in every country of the world, even countries where it’s still socially unacceptable or even illegal to be gay. It’s only a first step towards creating a cinematic world that reflects the one in which many of us are now proud to live. But it’s a step in the right direction and I applaud Disney for being brave enough to make it—and in doing so hopefully helping to change attitudes and bring about real social progress.”
Fans will get to see how the characters have been re-developed when Beauty and the Beast hits theaters on March 17.