A lot of people aren’t happy with this decision.
Disney’s upcoming movie Jungle Cruise, which will also star Dwayne ‘The Rock’ Johnson and Emily Blunt, is set to feature the movie studio’s first openly gay character.
However, many people on social media aren’t pleased with the casting choice — English comedian Jack Whitehall — arguing that having a straight man play a gay comic relief character is not the ideal way to represent gay people in film.
According to a report in The Sun, Whitehall’s character will be “hugely effete, very camp and very funny”.
The backlash on social media has been major, with many pointing out that gay actors struggle to find mainstream work, and that the trope of straight men playing “camp” gays for a laugh is fairly outdated.
One commentator noted that “Ironically, gay people have had to play it straight for years and appease society to avoid receiving abuse. Now straight actors are getting PAID to ‘play gay’.”
Some of the responses to the announcement can be read below, and they’re just the tip of the iceberg when it comes to the online backlash.
It’s too bad there weren’t any out actors who are regularly called some euphemism for “too camp” by casting directors, studios, networks, executives etc. for literally any role who were available for this Disney “first.” https://t.co/LfCkpUvnRV
— Emerson Collins (@ActuallyEmerson) August 12, 2018
https://twitter.com/DannyWRigg/status/1028739401331945474
https://twitter.com/DragonfireXL17/status/1028772983110881281
How about an openly gay actor/comedian playing the first openly gay “very Camp” character in a Disney film. Baby steps I guess. FUCK BABY STEPS. THIS IS BULLSHIT. https://t.co/yZMq8y4CAl
— Mario Cantone (@macantone) August 12, 2018
https://twitter.com/halestorm1219/status/1028729202017742850
CAST LGBT PPL FOR LGBT ROLES. REPRESENTATION MATTERS and no it’s not ok just bc "it’s acting". there are many gay actors who should’ve been given a chance to play a gay character but weren’t bc companies would rather not take a chance w negative publicity from homophobes https://t.co/Cc7s4x50CY
— kya (@softsadsatan) August 12, 2018
https://twitter.com/josh_salisbury/status/1028747908722634754
https://twitter.com/Kirsten_KE/status/1028758464808595456
https://twitter.com/Jim936/status/1028752184702324737
https://twitter.com/ATargaryenKing/status/1028737616680808448
Jungle Cruise is expected to hit cinemas in 2019.
LISTEN: You Must Be Jokin’ with Aideen McQueen – Faith healers, Coolock craic and Gigging as Gaeilge
