Beauty & The Beast Didn't Do Justice To Gay Character, Says Josh Gad
Josh Gad says that he didn’t do enough to earn the praise he received for his role as Disney’s first gay character in the live-action Beauty and the Beast. The film was released in 2017 and saw Gad play the flamboyant LeFou, the comic relief lackey to Luke Evans' Gaston. The pair made such an impression on audiences that a planned prequel series following Gaston and LeFou was in the works for a while, however, that project was recently put on hold indefinitely.
Leading up to the film’s release, Beauty and the Beast was heavily publicized and said to feature the first gay character in a Disney film with LeFou, making history for the company. Despite its fanfare, the actual “gay moment” featured in the film was a meager few seconds where LeFou trades in his female dance partner for another man. The preemptive hype around the film’s supposed gay representation opened it up to criticism from people who had expected more based on the advertising. LGBTQ+ fans will be happy to see LeFou’s actor wasn't happy either.
Related: Why Disney's First Gay Character Matters
In an interview with the Independent (via Entertainment Weekly), Gad was extremely critical of LeFou, both of his own performance and of Disney's handling of the situation. Gad said the scene was never intended to become the spectacle that it did, but the extent of the representation was blown out of proportion after filming. The actor believes that the filmmakers, himself included, should have done more to justify the title of the first gay Disney character, had that been their intention. Read Gad’s full quote below:
“[the film] didn't go far enough. We didn't go far enough to warrant accolades… We didn't go far enough to say, 'Look how brave we are.' My regret in
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