Growing up Disney was a massive influence on me, some my favourite movies being 'The Little Mermaid', 'Aristocats', 'The Black Cauldron' and yes 'Beauty and the beast'.
Every child loves being able to see themselves in their favourite stories; I know that 10 year old me adored Ariel, one of the reasons being her red hair.
I was very confused about my sexuality for years and I think part of that was due to the lack of information and misrepresentation in media.
Even now there is a lack of accurate LGBTQ+ representation, even when there is its 77% gay men, 23% lesbian women and only 9% bisexuals. Personally I have only seen two pansexual characters, that being Jack Harkness (Doctor who, Torchwood) and Deadpool, so I did a bit more research and...
...Thats not alot
Luckily every year there are more and more LGBTQ+ characters in media. The problem is that some characters come across as stereotypical and 2 dimensional. Stereotypes are there for a reason and yes they are sometimes true but after seeing the punchline 50 times???
If young people are view these 2 dimensional, stereotypical characters then they're going to be confused because they don't feel they fit into certain boxes.
Beauty and the Beast is one of the most famous fairy tales in the world, which then became one of Disney's most timeless classics. Disney fans leapt for joy when we discovered there would be a live action re-make, even more so when we discovered the incredibly talented cast, but it was the announcement that LeFou would be gay that caught the most attention.
While many leapt for joy, others immediately boycotted the film. The fact that Disney proudly released this information shows how far we've come. Sadly the movie was banned in several places or given a movie rating of 16+ or 18+ in others because of this.
Many believed LeFou would be pining for Gaston and possible resent Belle and the other girls because of his affections. In the original Gaston was not the greatest friend and LeFou was a bumbling sidekick, so it was interesting to see how this would unfold.
Thankfully LeFou didn't end up with Gaston (despite appearing to have some feeling towards him, but ultimately saw the toxicity of the relationship) and stepped out of his sidekick roll and became the sassy well rounded character we didn't realise we needed in the original. He still has that love/hate relationship with Gaston and in the end helps Mrs Potts to stop the intruders (I think we can all agree this was better than seeing him rip Babette's feathers out). The final dance brought a smile to everyones face and gave a hint to LeFou's own happily ever after.
Not only was Lefou and well executed and believable character but this means that we can expect more Disney, and it can be expected that many animation creators will follow suite.
Warner Bros & Son's 2016 movie 'Storks' showed families of every kind and Mattel have even hinted at a lesbian relationship between Darling Charming and Apple White (Ever After High) who after falling under a sleeping curse cannot be roused by Darlings brother so she steps up and tries 'mouth to mouth' aka the true loves kiss she needed.
ABC made strides with their show 'Once Upon a Time' with Mulan having feelings for Aurora and Ruby waking Dorothy with True loves kiss and expressing their love. Personally I'd love to see more of Merida and Mulan, who have great chemistry on screen as did Ruby and Dorothy.
While these are all great, they haven't had as much exposure as 'Beauty and the Beast'.
Personally I think LeFou signified that in the past few years we have come far...buuuuut we still have a loooooong way to go.
I know a little girl I used to look after who is going to grow up seeing all kinds of different characters represented and she will not struggle to find character she can emulate and that warms my heart. LeFou was a big step for Disney and I can't wait to see what happens next.
Catch ya later xx
