The Walt Disney Co. (NYSE:DIS) is getting an early jump on June’s Pride Month celebrations by dropping the trailer for “Fire Island,” an LGBTQ rom-com scheduled to premiere June 3 on Hulu.
What Happened: “Fire Island” is inspired by Jane Austen’s “Pride and Prejudice,” updated to focus on contemporary gay male romantic entanglements in the Fire Island beach resort off the southern shore of Long Island, New York, that is popular with LGBTQ vacationers.
Comedian Joel Kim Booster wrote and executive produced “Fire Island” and stars opposite “Saturday Night Live” actor Bowen Yang. Margaret Cho co-stars in the film, which is being released by Disney’s Searchlight Pictures unit.
Why It Matters: While there have been a number of Disney films and television shows featuring supporting characters who were either presumed or casually identified as LGBTQ characters, films from the company where LGBTQ characters are the center of attention are rare. The most notable examples are the 2020 animated short “Out” that dealt with a gay man preparing to tell his parents about his orientation and the Disney+ animated series “The Proud Family: Louder and Prouder” which included a same-sex kiss between two male characters.
Disney’s relationship with the LGBTQ community has been in the media and political spotlight for the past several weeks, with controversies ranging from the company’s response to Florida’s so-called “Don’t Say Gay” legislation to reports of censoring LGBTQ storylines in animated films.
Booster told Entertainment Weekly that "it's really tough" to consider the release of his film in the wake of the attention given to Disney’s commitment to the LGBTQ community.
"It's something that weighs on me really heavily, the responsibility of making, first off, a good and honest movie and something that felt authentic and real to the gay experience, and then to know that it's being produced through many pipelines to Disney," Booster said. “I'm so grateful that this movie is going to be seen by so many people and, in that way, hopefully will help queer kids who see themselves in these characters to feel good and affirmed.”
Photo: Matt Rogers, Zane Phillips, and Tomas Matos in “Fire Island,” courtesy of Searchlight Pictures / Hulu
