A new report claims that Pixar and Disney’s upcoming Lightyear film that is expected to feature a same-sex couple was promoted “pretty front and center” at a preview at CinemaCon.
It was reported back in November by film scooper and critic Grace Randolph that the film would include “substantial LGBT representation.”
Randolph tweeted, “I know some of you are disheartened by the Eternals Rotten Tomatoes score, considering it features the 1st LGBT couple in the MCU but don’t worry, Disney is not giving up!”
She added, “I hear there is substantial LGBT representation in Lightyear as well! (Not Buzz, another character).”
RELATED: Report: Disney To Include Gay Relationship In Lightyear Movie
That scoop was seemingly confirmed in March of this year when Variety reported that the film “does feature a significant female character, Hawthorne (voiced by Uzo Aduba), who is in a meaningful relationship with another woman.”
That report from Variety also detailed that Pixar and Disney had reportedly cut a kiss between the two character, but it was resorted after The Walt Disney Company decided to declare they were actively opposing Florida’s anti-grooming bill that banned instruction of gender identity and sexual orientation to children in kindergarten through third grade.
Now, a new report coming out CinemaCon, claims this same-sex couple was “pretty front and center” in Pixar and Disney’s presentation for the film.
Puck writer and founding partner Matthew Belloni relayed, “Florida’s gonna love Disney’s LIGHTYEAR. The same-sex couple is pretty front and center in an extended sequence.”
Belloni wasn’t the only who discussed the film’s LGBT characters. YouTuber Robert Meyer Burnett tweeted, “Disney showed 30 minutes of LIGHTYEAR. If you told me I’d have tears streaming down my checks 25 minutes in, I’d have said you were nuts. But here we are.”
He added, “Also, best earned LGBTQ representation I’ve seen in awhile. First animated film in the IMAX ratio. A must-see in the format.”
It shouldn’t come as a surprise that Lightyear will prominently feature a same sex couple. Before Disney CEO Bob Chapek pledged his fealty to the LGBTQ+ lobbying arm, he made it abundantly clear that he intends to change American culture through Disney’s programming with more LGBTQ+ content.
In an email sent to Disney employees, Chapek wrote, “I believe the best way for our company to bring about lasting change is through the inspiring content we produce, the welcoming culture we create, and the diverse community organizations we support.”
He then detailed, “There’s a reason content is at the top of this list. For nearly a century, our company’s stories have opened minds, inspired dreams, shown the world both as it is and how we wish it could be, and now more than ever before, represent the incredible diversity of our society.”
“We are telling important stories, raising voices, and I believe, changing hearts and minds,” he added.
Further emphasizing this point he wrote, “Encanto, Black Panther, Pose, Reservation Dogs, Coco, Soul, Modern Family, Shang-Chi, Summer of Soul, Love, Victor. These and all of our diverse stories are our corporate statements and they are more powerful than any tweet or lobbying effort.”
He would later state, “Powerful content that changes hearts and minds only springs from inclusive cultures, which not only attract and retain the best and most diverse talent, but also give those employees the freedom to bring forth ideas that reflect their lives and experiences. We must work together to ensure Disney always remains such a place.”
RELATED: Watch The First Trailer For Disney’s Buzz Lightyear Origin Movie ‘Lightyear’ Right Here
Chapek’s comments were not just mere words as would be quickly revealed when journalist Christopher F. Rufo released footage of Disney’s Reimagine Tomorrow video conference call that saw Disney TVA executive producer admit the company has a not-at-all-secret gay agenda.
Raveneau stated, “In my little pocket of Proud Family Disney TVA, the showrunners were super welcoming. Meredith Roberts and our leadership over there has been so welcoming to my not-at-all-secret gay agenda.”
She further elaborated, “Maybe it was that way in the past, but I guess something must have happened in the last, they are turning it around, they’re going hard, and then like all that momentum that I felt, that sense of ‘I don’t have to be afraid to have these two characters kiss in the background.’ I was just, wherever I could, just basically adding queerness. If you see anything queer in the show — no one would stop me, and no one was trying to stop me.”
SCOOP: I’ve obtained video from inside Disney’s all-hands meeting about the Florida parental rights bill, in which executive producer Latoya Raveneau says her team has implemented a “not-at-all-secret gay agenda” and is regularly “adding queerness” to children’s programming. pic.twitter.com/eJnZMpKIXT
— Christopher F. Rufo ⚔️ (@realchrisrufo) March 29, 2022
In another video, Raveneau details she wants to use Disney programming to teach not only Gay 101 but Gay Advanced.
She said, “I’m still thinking I want to use my content to go deeper – talk about how non-monolithic the LGBTQ+ community as an asexual. As an asexual – I feel like a lot of people don’t what that is. I have to have a dissertation ready at any given time.”
“I want to add the pockets of the LGBTQ community that you don’t see. I want to get gay advanced. And then I realized, ‘Oh s***, we need to go back to Gay 101,’” she declared.
NEW: Disney executive producer Latoya Raveneau says she identifies as a “bi-romantic asexual” and that she wants to “use [her] content” at Disney to educate children about “the pockets of the LGBTQ community that you don’t see,” such as the asexual community. pic.twitter.com/gNJ0CItgqV
— Christopher F. Rufo ⚔️ (@realchrisrufo) April 7, 2022
Disney production coordinator Allen March made it abundantly clear they were targeting kids with this type of content in order to influence them.
March stated, “All this content is going to kids who don’t know any of this. And even if they are in a household like Heath that has supportive parents they’re still getting all of this information from media of what is normal There’s a lot of power to that and it just needs to be acknowledged.”
NEW: Disney production coordinator Allen March, who says his team is committed to “exploring queer stories” and promoting “trans,” “bisexual,” and “gender nonconforming” characters, says kids are “getting all this information from the media” and “there’s a lot of power to that.” pic.twitter.com/rgxXgcIEwA
— Christopher F. Rufo ⚔️ (@realchrisrufo) March 31, 2022
RELATED: Lightyear Director Implies Tim Allen Was Never Considered To Voice Buzz Lightyear
The official description from Lightyear states, “The definitive origin story of Buzz Lightyear, the hero who inspired the toy, “Lightyear” follows the legendary Space Ranger after he’s marooned on a hostile planet 4.2 million light-years from Earth alongside his commander and their crew.”
“As Buzz tries to find a way back home through space and time, he’s joined by a group of ambitious recruits and his charming robot companion cat, Sox. Complicating matters and threatening the mission is the arrival of Zurg, an imposing presence with an army of ruthless robots and a mysterious agenda,” it concludes.
The film stars Chris Evans as Buzz Lightyear, Uzo Aduba as Alisha Hawthorne, Peter Sohn as Soz, Keke Palmer as Izzy Hawthorne, Taika Waititi as Mo Morrison, Dales Soule as Darby Steel, and James Brolin as Zurg. Joining them is Mary McDonald-Lewis as the computer I.V.A.N., Isiah Whitlock Jr, as Commander Burnside, Efren Ramirez as Airman Diaz, and Keira Hairston as Young Izzy.
The film is directed by Angus MacLane and produced by Galyn Susman. It is expected to arrive in theaters on June 17, 2022.
What do you make of these reports from CinemaCon about Lightyear featuring a same-sex relationship prominently in their footage to promote the film?