‘The Owl House‘ Pushed Disney’s LGBTQ+ Representation to Evolve Before “Don’t Say Gay” – Them
Twitter content
This content can also be viewed on the site it originates from.
“I am someone who honestly had a hard time coming to terms with my queerness until my mid-20s, because of stuff like this,” she said in the video announcement, adding, “Working for this company has made me so distraught. And I hate, hate, hate having moral quandaries about how I feed myself and how I support my loved ones.”
Later that month, multiple employees organized a company-wide walkout against Bob Chapek’s failure to adequately respond to “Don’t Say Gay.”
After Chapek issued a ho-hum apology, the House of Mouse has seemingly responded to the public shaming, opening up its LGBTQ+ representation more than ever before. Just this past year, the reportedly cut kiss between Commander Hawthorne and her wife in Lightyear ended up in the final cut, making it the first onscreen queer kiss in a Pixar film. Then, in the Disney+ animated series, Baymax, a trans man and an out gay man were both featured. In fact, actor and comedian Jaboukie Young-White is double dipping by voicing two openly gay characters in both Baymax and the upcoming Walt Disney Animation Studios film Strange World.
When Disney seemingly thought it could sit on the fence as anti-LGBTQ+ bigotry resurged in America, fans and creators proved that neutrality was not an option. But Terrace and Owl House had paved the way for that pushback. It may not have been the first series to ever throw a brick in the Mouse House, but it certainly shattered some glass.
Today, the future of LGBTQ+ representation is looking brighter at an entertainment company that gave the gay community scraps for decades. Things aren’t perfect, but LGBTQ+ characters are becoming more prominent in each greenlit project within the animation umbrella, boding well for the future of the brand in a world that’s growing queerer by the day.
The Owl House may be nearing its end, but the LGBTQ+ characters it introduced will be remembered as among the most unforgettable in Disney history, even if the company didn’t deserve them at the time.
Get the best of what’s queer. Sign up for Them’s weekly newsletter here.