Disney’s Jungle Cruise, directed by Jaume Collet-Serra, stars Dwayne Johnson as Frank Wolff, a hero who runs the movie. The cast includes Emily Blunt, Jack Whitehall, and Edgar Ramirez. Jack Whitehall co-stars as the gay brother of Emily Blunt’s character, MacGregor Houghton, who is on a jungle mission to find the mythical Tree of Life. The movie is set in the early part of the 20th century during World War I era, and tells the action-packed story of a British scientist named Dr. Lily Houghton (Emily Blunt) and her brother McGregor.
The film is based on Disneyland’s theme park ride, where McGregor Houghton is the younger brother of Lily Houghton. The family lived in Kensington, where MacGregor lived a posh and privileged life with a love for animals. Jack Whitehall plays MacGregor Houghton, the younger brother of Lily Houghton, who eventually reveals himself to be the hero.
The film is produced by Walt Disney Pictures and stars Dwayne Johnson, Emily Blunt, Édgar Ramírez, Jack Whitehall, Jesse Plemons, and Paul Giamatti. The film tells the story of Dr. Lily Houghton, the protagonist, and his brother, McGregor Houghton.
Quim Gutierrez plays Melchor, a character involved in the search for the Tree of Life. The cast hopes to make a splash with American audiences by starring in the Disney movie.
📹 Jungle Cruise Gay Character – Jack Whitehall
Jungle Cruise Jack Whitehall today! Beyond The Trailer host Grace Randolph’s reaction & breakdown! Disney announces first …
Who is Lily’s brother?
While her popularity was growing, Tay’s mother Angela Tian came in contact with talent managers in Los Angeles, California. Tay, her mother and 16-year-old half-brother Jason moved from Tay’s hometown of Vancouver, British Columbia to live in Los Angeles. According to the Atlantic she was homeschooled in Los Angeles, though her father instead said she missed 72 days of school while living there.
It was reported that Tay’s older half-brother Jason was in control of her social media accounts. As Tay’s actions became more public, Tay’s mother, Angela Tian, faced criticism online for allowing her young daughter to create rap videos with crude language. Amid controversy and speculation that her actions were forced by her mother, Tay defended her mother in an interview on Good Morning America, saying she was not forcing Tay to act this way and that she was content with her actions.
In a May 2018 interview with BuzzFeed News, Tay’s mother stated that Jason directed the videos and managed social media accounts, with the article being released amidst a reportedly leaked video of the older half-brother coaching Tay on what to say in her video. Jason, who apparently directed Tay’s videos, was described by Business Insider as “reportedly domineering” while an article in The Atlantic cited someone close to Tay stating “I’ve seen her brother shout at her. Once Jason was yelling at her, saying, ‘You’re no good, it’s no good.’ She was crying hard”. It was also reported that Tay’s mother, a real estate agent, allowed Tay and Jason to record their videos in luxurious homes she was working with and used her boss’ Mercedes-Benz 550 SL to portray themselves as being owners, all of which was allegedly done without the permission of her employer. Tay’s controversial videos and reputation ultimately resulted in her mother losing her job.
What happened to Prince Joachim?
After the news was made public, Prince Joachim of Denmark relocated to the United States with his family. Now, the couple have spoken to the Washington Post about the Queen’s decision, confessing it had been a challenging time for the family.
Prince Joachim of Denmark and Princess Marie with Joachim’s four children, who lost their prince and princess titles: Countess Athena of Monpezat, Count Felix of Monpezat, Count Henrik of Monpezat and Count Nikolai of Monpezat.
Who did Prince Joachim marry?
WeddingOn 24 May 2008, Marie Cavallier married Prince Joachim of Denmark and, in connection with the wedding, became HRH Princess Marie, Countess of Monpezat. The wedding ceremony took place in Møgeltønder Church, and the wedding banquet was held at Schackenborg Castle.
ChildrenHE Count Henrik Carl Joachim Alain, born on 4 May 2009, and HE Countess Athena Marguerite Françoise Marie born on 24 January 2012.
ResidencePrince Joachim and Princess Marie and the couple’s two children, Count Henrik and Countess Athena, reside in Washington.
What happens to Frank in Jungle Cruise?
Furthermore, Frank comes to the rescue to save Lily being attacked by Prince Joachim just as Frank retrieves the last petal of the Tears of the Moon from the sacred tree which suddenly withers after the Moon sets. When Aguirre and his conquistadors appear and set out an ambush, Frank plans to protect his allies from Aguirre by showing him the petal while telling Proxima to protect McGregor. Frank prepares to sacrifice his beloved ship the La Quila in order to save Lily by crashing it into a pillar in which while trying to sacrifice it, Aguirre and Sancho leap into the La Quila and the two conquistadors attack him. Frank plans to save himself from Sancho by opening the ship’s engine to use fire to dislodge Sancho to which as Frank her plan to sacrifice the La Quila, Gonzalo, Aguirre, and Sancho continue assaulting Frank as Aguirre tells Frank to give him the petal. Aguirre’s snakes then begin to attack Frank while Aguirre himself urges Frank to give him the petal. As Frank plans to give Aguirre the petal, Frank plans to give it to him only to find the toucan decoy inside much to Aguirre’s snakes being deceived by the toucan decoy. Frank suddenly crashes his ship into a pillar to block the river. Frank ends up being grabbed by the vines and later petrified into stone, alongside the other conquistadors.
With Frank petrified on the wall with the other conquistadors, Proxima sadly reacts to Frank who was turned into stone to which Lily manages to give a petal of the Tears of the Moon to revive Frank just as Frank happily rejoices with Lily, McGregor, and Proxima to which a new petal of the Tree of Life suddenly grows inside the La Luna Rota area. The next day, Frank returns to Porto Velho via raft alongside Lily, McGregor, and Proxima. There, Frank approaches Nilo to which Frank explains to him that he has all the boats to which Nilo feels startled upon feeling Proxima passing through him just as Frank, Lily, McGregor, and Proxima walk across the docks. Arriving back at England, Lily teaches Frank how to drive a car while exploring the streets of London with Proxima sitting at the back of the car just as the two drive around London.
Disney Parks(). Jungle Cruise(). Frank’s jacket can be seen hanging in the office of Alberta Falls along with that of Lily Houghton. His hat is hanging in an office within the Magic Kingdom’s Jungle Cruise. The map of the Magic Kingdom’s Jungle Cruise rivers appears to have been made by him as well, as a gift for Jungle Navigation Company founder Dr. Albert Falls in 1911 then augmented by Alberta in the 1930s. On the map is the message “To Albert, here’s to many more adventures of a lifetime -F.W.” on the bottom left corner and on the upper-right corner, “Here is adventure, here is romance, here is mystery”. This map also appears aboard the Mekong Maiden in Disneyland’s Jungle Cruise, in the possession of chimpanzees.
Who plays Frank in Jungle Cruise?
Dwayne Johnson Jungle Cruise – Dwayne Johnson as Frank Wolff – IMDb.
Frank Wolff : If you’re lucky enough to have one person in this life to care about, then that’s world enough for me.
Lily Houghton : Aguirre’s cartographer certainly was prolific.
Frank Wolff : He lost his life searching for something that can’t be found.
Who is Prince Joachim in Jungle Cruise?
Actor Jesse Plemons Portrayal in fiction Prince Joachim was played by American actor Jesse Plemons in the 2021 Disney fantasy adventure film Jungle Cruise.
Prince Joachim Franz Humbert of Prussia (17 December 1890 – 18 July 1920) was the youngest son and sixth child of Wilhelm II, German Emperor, by his first wife, Augusta Victoria of Schleswig-Holstein. He committed suicide at age 29. Prince Joachim was educated as an officer and participated in the First World War. During the war, he was considered a candidate for several newly established monarchies in Europe.
His great-grandson is Grand Duke George Mikhailovich, the heir apparent to Maria Vladimirovna, a claimant to the disputed Headship of the Imperial Family of Russia.
Prince Joachim was born on 17 December 1890, two years after his father had become the German Emperor, at the Berlin Palace in central Berlin. He was the sixth and youngest son of Emperor Wilhelm II, and his first wife, Princess Augusta Victoria of Schleswig-Holstein.
Who is Lily’s brother in Jungle Cruise?
McGregor Houghton is the tritagonist of the 2021 Disney live-action film Jungle Cruise, which is based on the ride of the same name. He is the younger brother of Lily Houghton.
History(). McGregor Houghton is the brother of the adventurous Lily Houghton. In 1916, they traveled to the Amazon rainforest in search for the mythical Tears of the Moon.
Role in the film(). McGregor is first seen telling the people at the Royal Society a story of what happened in the South American jungle explaining to the public of how Lope de Aguirre and his conquistadors searched the sacred Tree of Life at the region of Lágrimas de Cristal where the true source of legend would be found and the Tears of the Moon is not a myth to which Sir James explains to him that the information he provided to the people is false, explaining that the archives are focused on the providence of legitimate scholars, not inspired amateurs. Just as McGregor continues explaining his examination, Sir James tells him that he presents him an audience in deference to his late father, explaining to him that this deference is a remarkable paper which was submitted by Dr. Lily Houghton to which he offers him to find his way out. Later when Lily is escaping from Prince Joachim and Sir Charles with the Arrowhead she retrieved from the Albert Falls Expedition crate, McGregor attempts to save Lily who is above him to which Lily drops into a double-decker bus full of soldiers while McGregor attempts to catch up with Lily who is on the bus.
Was Jungle Cruise a hit or flop?
Biggest box-office bombsTitleYearEstimated loss (millions)Adjusted for inflationJack the Giant Slayer2013$135John Carter2012$149–265Jungle Cruise §2021$169.
In the film and media industry, if a film released in theatres fails to break even by a large amount, it is considered a box-office bomb (or box-office flop), thus losing money for the distributor, studio, and/or production company that invested in it. Due to the secrecy surrounding costs and profit margins in the film industry, figures of losses are usually rough estimates at best, and there are often conflicting estimates over how much a film has lost. To accommodate this uncertainty, the losses are presented as ranges where this is the case, and the list is ordered alphabetically in the absence of a definitive order. Because the films on the list have been released over a large span of time, currency inflation is a material factor, so losses are adjusted for inflation using the United States Consumer Price Index to enable comparison at equivalent purchasing power.
Some films on this list grossed more than their production budgets yet are still regarded as flops. This can be due to Hollywood accounting practices that manipulate profits or keep costs secret to circumvent profit-sharing agreements, but it is also possible for films to lose money legitimately even when the theatrical gross exceeds the budget. This is because a distributor does not collect the full gross, and the full cost of a film can substantially exceed its production budget once distribution and marketing are taken into account. For example, tax filings in 2010 for Cinemark Theatres show that only 54.5 percent of ticket revenues went to the distributor, with the exhibitor retaining the rest. While the distributor’s cut will vary from film to film, a Hollywood studio will typically collect half the gross in the United States and less in other parts of the world. Marketing often represents a substantial share of the overall cost of the picture too: for a film with an average sized budget the promotion and advertising costs are typically half that of the production budget, and in the case of smaller films it is not unusual for the cost of the marketing to be higher than the production budget. In some cases, a company can make profits from a box-office bomb when ancillary revenues are taken into account, such as streaming, home media sales and rentals, television broadcast rights, and licensing fees, so a film that loses money at the box office can still eventually break even.
There are some films notorious for large production budgets and widely seen as box-office bombs that have either broken even or turned a profit. Cleopatra nearly bankrupted 20th Century Fox with production and marketing costs of US$44 million and numerous delays. It was among the top ten films of the 1960s, but still failed to recoup its investment during its theatrical release. However, it eventually broke even in 1966 when Fox sold the television broadcast rights to ABC for $5 million. The total costs for Waterworld exceeded $300 million and it was perceived as a disaster at the time, despite grossing $264 million worldwide. It also eventually broke even through other revenue streams. Such films are still cited as high-risk examples in evaluating the prospects of future productions. For example, Cleopatra is blamed for a decline in big-budget epic films in the 1960s.
Why did the Jungle Cruise fail?
“‘Jungle Cruise’ was weak because, even without headwinds, it’s so far from what would be considered good,” says David A. Gross, who runs the movie consulting firm Franchise Entertainment Research. “That movie needed to open at $80 million to $100 million to fulfill its tentpole aspirations.”
Prior to the pandemic, assessing the financial success or failure of a film was relatively simple and finite.
For a big-budgeted movie, the volume of ticket sales collected in its first three days in movie theaters gave a good indication of whether or not it would be profitable. There were exceptions, of course, but for the majority of studio movies, all it took to read the box office tea leaves was a quick look at opening weekend revenues.
COVID-19 has scrambled that calculus. The movie theater business is still struggling to recover from the public heath crisis, reshaping the criteria for success and making it exceedingly difficult to separate the hits from the misses.
What was Disney’s biggest movie flop?
The 15 Biggest Box-Office Bombs in Disney History1 ‘The Marvels’2 ‘Haunted Mansion’ … 3 ‘Indiana Jones and the Dial of Destiny’ … 4 ‘Strange World’ … 5 ‘Turning Red’ … 6 ‘Tomorrowland’ … 7 ‘The Lone Ranger’ … 8 ‘John Carter’ …
The Walt Disney Corporation is one of the biggest media conglomerates in the world. With various production labels including Touchstone Pictures, Walt Disney Animation Studios, and Walt Disney Pictures, they have released hundreds of movies in both live-action, animation, and hybrids. Many of these films have cemented themselves in history for their quality and pushing the boundaries of what came before.
However, pushing boundaries doesn’t always result in success. Disney has released several films considered box office flops, and some of them are even among the biggest flops ever made. Whether they were films that were simply released at the wrong time, had steep competition, or were outright so poorly made that audiences didn’t want to see them, there are many reasons why these Disney films failed at the box office. While it’s easy to see Disney as a flawless magical kingdom where they make no mistakes, some films paint the exact opposite picture.
The Black Cauldron for a long time was the black sheep of the Disney name, with its massive failure being the overwhelming and only discussion surrounding the film. The film follows the story of Taran, a young boy who takes care of a pig who can see the future, but dreams of being a knight. He loses the pig to the minions of the evil Horned King, who is searching for the black cauldron, so he can summon an army of undead. Along with a furry creature obsessed with apples, a runaway princess, and an old harper, Taran races to find the cauldron first.
Who plays the brother in the Jungle Cruise?
Jack Whitehall (MacGregor Houghton) Playing the role of MacGregor Houghton, the brother of Lily who accompanies her on the voyage is Jack Whitehall, who may finally make a splash with American audiences by starring in Jungle Cruise.
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After it was pushed back from its original October 2019 release date to July 2020 before being pushed back another whole year, the time has finally come that we get to see Dwayne Johnson visit “the backside of water.” In Jungle Cruise, based on the popular Disneyland attraction of the same name, The Rock plays a sea boat captain enlisted to help guide an eccentric scientist, played by Emily Blunt, on a quest to find the Tree of Life during World War I. While it is easy to tell that this is destined to be one of the biggest 2021 movies with such huge stars in the lead, there are many other big names in the Jungle Cruise cast to look forward to seeing.
Dwayne Johnson (Frank Wolff). Playing a hero named Frank who runs a slightly sketchy river tour operation until he’s hired by Emily Blunt’s character for an entirely different purpose is The Rock. He first transitioned from wrestling to acting playing his father on That ‘70s Show before making his film debut in 2001’s The Mummy Returns as The Scorpion King.
Who did Emily Blunt play in Jungle Cruise?
- Dwayne Johnson as Frank Wolff / Francisco Lopez de Heredia:A shrewd and cynical but ultimately noble steamboat skipper who reluctantly agrees to guide two explorers on their quest for the mythical Tree. He eventually reveals his true name and identity as Aguirre’s adopted brother and one of the cursed conquistadors, forever trapped by the Amazon River. He is a trained cartographer who has spent centuries searching for the Tree to break the curse that made him immortal so he can die peacefully. Meanwhile, he has built a town, and a boat he christened “La Quila” for his business under “Jungle Navigation Company” while owning a number of tamed exotic cats as a pet, each named “Proxima”(d).
- Emily Blunt as Dr. Lily Houghton:An eccentric, adventurous and virtuous botanist working in a male-dominated field, who hopes to find the Tree in order to harness its power for modern medicine. Possessing an ancient arrowhead and one of Frank’s old maps of the Amazon, she proves she is resourceful and capable in martial arts and lock picking skills, despite the fact that she cannot swim until Frank helps her out with it at La Luna Rota. She wants to prove herself equal to her chauvinistic peers but gains some notoriety for wearing trousers.
- Édgar Ramírez as Aguirre:A Spanish conquistador who once sought the Tree’s power to save his ill daughter, only to be cursed with immortality for his cruelty towards its guardians. Temporarily freed by German explorers, he sets out to take revenge on his adopted brother, Frank, for turning on him. His partially-decomposed body is now composed of an infestation of snakes and as such, he possesses the ability to convert part or all of his body into snakes.
- Jack Whitehall as MacGregor Houghton:Lily’s younger brother who works as her assistant. He later confesses to Frank that the rest of their family disowned him after he was outed as being gay when he refused to marry a woman, prompting Lily to hire him so he could support himself and he has been loyal to her ever since. As a somewhat foppish snob who adheres to proper etiquette and prefers wearing three-piece suits, he seems ill-suited to jungle life, but gradually develops into a more confident, rugged man by the end of the expedition.
- Jesse Plemons as Prince Joachim:A deranged and ambitious German royal who finances and leads a military expedition with mercenaries to claim the Tree of Life, both to aid Germany’s war effort and achieve immortality. He receives aid from the cursed conquistadors after he frees them for his own interest, and communicates with them through their bees and snakes.
- Paul Giamatti as Nilo Nemolato:The harbormaster at Nilo’s River Adventure, Porto Velho, where Frank moors his boat. Nilo owns a Moluccan cockatoo named “Rosita”. He is also a business rival, and confiscates Frank’s boat engine when Frank is unable to repay him a loan with Rosita constantly quoting “Frank owes me money”. This leads Frank to wreck Nilo’s prize boats in return.
Additionally, Verónica Falcón plays Trader Sam, the female chief of the Puka Michuna tribe in 1916, who is a longtime friend of Frank’s and knows about the curse. The Puka Michuna tribe has a centuries-long history of guarding the Tree, but Sam does not know the exact location herself until Lily shows her the arrowhead. Dan Dargan Carter, Dani Rovira, and Quim Gutiérrez play Aguirre’s fellow conquistadors, as, respectively: Gonzalo, whose partially-decomposed body is composed of tree parts; Sancho, whose is composed of honeycombs and the colonies of honeybees that ride on him; and Melchor, whose is composed of mud and the poison dart frogs that ride on him. All the conquistadors have the ability to dissolve into their constituent parts to rapidly move through the jungle, as well as maintain telepathic control of the creatures inhabiting their bodies. Andy Nyman plays Sir James Hobbs-Coddington, the Royal Society’s artifact handler who briefly helps Prince Joachim; while Raphael Alejandro plays Zaqueu, Frank’s young assistant.
Other characters include the chief of the Puka Michuna tribe in 1556, played by Pedro Lopez, who cursed the conquistadors; and his daughter, played by Sulem Calderon, who protects the artifact away from the jungle. Also, stunt-actor Ben Jenkin was on set for the motion-capture of Proxima, Frank’s devoted pet jaguar. She is one of a series of exotic cats rescued and trained by Frank that were all given the same name. Out of fear and later affectionately, MacGregor nicknames her “Murder Cat”.
📹 “Tight balls!” Dwayne ‘The Rock’ Johnson, Emily Blunt & Jack Whitehall on Jungle Cruise nicknames
Dwayne Johnson is back for Disney’s latest adventure movie, Jungle Cruise. Along with Emily Blunt and Jack Whitehall, they’re …
i honestly don’t really mind that he’s straight and playing gay because i’m my opinion i don’t really matter. however the stereotypes placed there is just hurtful and i don’t care that that character exists just not put that as a ground breaking event. ground breaking is seeing someone in the community as what you didn’t expect
The fact that he’s gonna be a comedic stereotype is appalling. However, I still don’t think that an actor’s personal sexual orientation should have anything to do with the characters they play. Sexuality doesn’t define a person & no actor should be limited to roles strictly within their own personal preferences. I loved how Luke Evans, an openly gay man, played the masculine hetero character in Beauty & the Beast, instead of the one gay character the film had to offer (even though the portrayal of the gay character was a slap in the face to the lgbtq community)
Disney clearly has not learned it’s lesson since Beauty and the Beast. Why is it so hard to just have a nuanced gay character? Even if he’s played by a straight actor. At least let the character be someone the LGBTQA community can see as more than a stereotype. Also it has to be hurtful to gays who are effeminate to have their personality demonized. Really Disney?
I just want a character who happens to be gay to be a total badass, involved in a storyline that doent need to be about coming out or exploring sexuality, a sci-fi fantasy or epic comic book movie storyline. why does being gay have to be the main point of the character and simply not an aspect of the character. Gay characters can be funny but shouldn’t act as a stereotype or simply the but of all jokes.
The thing is, there have been gay people who have played straight people. Should straight people be “offended” by this? 😂 It’s ridiculous that this is an issue! Basically – if the actor or actress is great for the role and does a good job, I have zero problem with them playing whatever role they’ve been given. I wish Jack Whitehall luck with this amazing opportunity to be in a Disney movie ❤️
As a gay man. I’m not feminine as stereotypes think. And while I’m happy that Disney is having a openly gay character in their movie, the fact that there’s many gay actors who can pull it off better such as Matt Bomer who is well known as well. And the fact that they are having this character be a stereotype that many gay man try to destroy is really offensive.
well i’m a “stereotypical” gay, i’m very fem and funny so I don’t really care if the character is feminine and pampered, not all gay characters have to be straight passing. also, as much as i would like an actual gay person to play the role it really doesn’t matter. as long as i get some representation and it not be subtle, i’m good
Its time to stop, after Scarlett’s issue over the trans role we cannot cowtow to casting strictly LGBT roles to the LGBT community. We openly give gay actors straight roles and even coloured actors white roles (super hero movies come to mind) but a straight dude an LGBT role is controversial? Its not like I can’t even see their point, anyone should but if having a LGBT role in a movie is so clearly walking on eggshells all the time at what point do people just stop creating LGBT characters as it’s a guaranteed way to derail a movie. Nobody is actually SEEING the roles before losing their minds (which you could maybe relate to, at least debate) but it’s always pre-movie…
Timothee Chalamet and Armie Hammer are not part of the LGBTQ community yet they both played two gay men in CMBYN, similarly Nick Robinson for Love Simon, where was the major backlash for that? Surely it would be typecasting to HAVE to have an LGBT person play an LGBT role and that excludes straight people from playing that role? Double standards no?
as a gay person, I have absolutely no problem with a straight person playing a gay character, although I would rather a gay actor did so in order to better how that character is handled. However, I have major issues with them portraying a stereotype for laughs and hope this is rectified. You nailed this topic, Grace!
As a gay person, I have no problem with a straight man playing a gay character, and I personally love Jack Whitehall (because he’s cute). What I DO have an issue with is the portrayal of this character as a joke through the use of incredibly harmful stereotypes. Also Disney, you already announced LeFou as your first “openly gay character”, so when he wasn’t well received you just shove it under the rug and try again? Did you learn nothing from LeFou?
He was casted because he fitted the part of the character, he wasn’t casted because he fitted the role of being gay. Being gay has nothing to do with acting or his onscreen performance. As long as he isn’t being a stereotype then I honestly don’t care what is sexuality is!! It shouldn’t matter if a person is straight or gay because it shouldn’t define a character.
I very rarely comment on YouTube articles but I want to take the time to tell you that this was a fantastic article grace. As a closeted person with a homophobic family that laughs at effeminate male jokes this news is really disheartening. Great article as always 😀 Btw, it hurts so badly to not be able to watch love Simon and I can’t wait to get to watch it eventually!
I’m really tired of Hollywood portraying gay men as cartoonish comic relief especially by straight men. I thought we were moving past this but obviously casting directors and producers are not interested in proper representation. You’re absolutely right Grace, it’s really sad that this is coming from Disney of all studios.
I’m as Gay as possible, and I enjoyed his character because he had a nice arc, and he stepped up when the action started happening. And I cannot tell you how many Gay men I’ve known and loved who were quite effite. As to should the actor have been Gay who played the part, I don’t care. At the end of the film, we were rooting for him rather than laughing at him. He was playing a Gay man in 1916, and Gay men were often effite back than, especially Europeans. I think your outrage is manufactured.
As a gay man I saw no problem with Whitehall playing the role. He does have a camp personality to his comedy anyway which is why i thought he was hired for such a role. But it took your wonderful sense of perspective to shine a light on how such a decision was taking a step back for the LGBT community. You Grace, never fail to surprise us. That’s why I love your articles. 😊
But can we appreciate the fact that Disney finally welcomes in an openly gay character to the franchise. Where we know the character is definitely part of the lgbt community. It is grinding that they stereotyped the first lgbt character, but then again if it is done right, it wouldn’t be as bad. Oh btw I’m gay and a baby drag queen, so please I am coming from the heart here
As a gay man myself I can honestly tell you that I have NO PROBLEM perusal a straight actor play a gay character. Actors are actors. We see it ALL the time, and honestly we’ve already broken the mold for GAY actors. In 2017, Luke Evans (a gay actor) played 2 STRAIGHT characters: Gaston (Beauty & The Beast) & Dr. William Marston (Professor Marston And The Wonder Women). So that’s not what I have a problem with. What I have a problem with is when you said his character would be “very effete, very camp, and very funny”. All I heard Grace was “he will be cringy, cringy, and especially cringy”. 😨😦😟 Why Disney? WHY?!
Disney: I want an empowered woman in pants, independent and brave. Disney: I want a gay brother but with all the stereotypes. I think it is good that they represent a camp character but it is not necessary to endow them with frivolity and cowardice so that their task is not to be a hero like Emily and The Rock but a funny fool
I am a fan of Jack Whitehall, but am worried for the reasons you listed about the character. I would be curious if one thing was able to change about the movie, would it would be better to recast to have a gay actor play an ‘effete’ gay character or have straight man play a more subtle, non-in-your-face stereotypical gay man? Loved the article as always 🙂
Man I hope this article trends. This perfectly displays that the main problem with this is the depiction of the character to be a stereotype of gay men for the purpose of comedy and to be laughed at rather than the actual actor being straight or gay which to be honest while I’m mixed about is not the bigger issue here.
This whole “only _ people should get to play _ roles” is getting ridiculous. The saying holds up. “Get woke, go broke” Who cares who’s playing what. As long as the actor is doing a good job. Of course film isn’t going to go back to only men playing the roles. But trans people only playing trans? That’s silly. Get a bankable actor, who’s good. Done
The fact that people are angrier by the fact that the character being stereotypically gay than another straight actor is going to play another gay character in a could be another major film is sad. You should be equally angry at both reasons because both are offensive. Just when would it be time for LGBT actors to play as ourselves in another could be a major film in Hollywood or Disney.
This a stupid argument a stright person can play a gay character just as good as gay person play a stright character because as long they look and ACT the part is ok. A man cant replace a woman because they look so different, same thing a white actor cant play a black character becuase the dont look the same!!! Thats a dumb comparisson. This is coming from someone who is ok with gay rights all they way they are my equal imo.
As a bisexual meaning I’m gay and straight. I love jack Whitehall and I love his comedy shows and although hes straight is fully convincing that he is gay. He is funny and I think should be aloud this role along side the Rock. He loves Disney, he got his voice cut out of frozen, Robert Patterson is his mortal enemy. He deserves a roll that speaks to him. He’s an amazing comedian
I think that Grace does raise a lot of fair and true points but I disagree with this modern motion that only x should play x; I think actors should be selected based on their talent and wherever or not they’re a good fit to play the character. as for the sexuality on a sleeve, that’s dead o though…
I agree with everything you said. I don’t mind straight people playing gay characters and vice versa but if you’re marketing a movie as having the first openly gay Disney character, you should have a gay person play the role. That’s like casting Idris Elba as the Green Turtle (the first Asian superhero) lol.
First let me say I love your work, i always enjoy perusal your articles! I don’t like this idea that straight people should only play straight characters, I’m gay and an actor, I wouldn’t want to be restricted to only play gay characters, i want to play both, I’ve never been a fan of double standards. As to the character being a stereotype… not a fan but let’s hope that this film isn’t a train wreck.
I think I recently came up with a nice comparison when I thought about the fact that Hollywood makes such an effort to cast British people for British characters. And if they don’t, the person mimicking a British accent is mostly cringed at. Now why can’t they treat minorities the same way? A straight man playing a gay man just has a lot of potential to be cringey (although I have seen it done well, for example on Netflix’ “Shadowhunters”, so it can still be good)
Grace, I think it’s important to note that Jack Whitehall’s is known in the UK for his posh, effete persona in his comedy acts so he isn’t playing some parody of a gay man but rather a parody of himself. As a gay man, I don’t see a problem with a straight man playing a gay character because the representation is there. The shortage in Disney is not for gay ACTORS (Luke Evans, Tessa Thompson, Ellen) but rather gay CHARACTERS. It shouldn’t matter who’s playing them.
3:28 Yes, people who say actors should be allowed to act are really just saying straight white men should play everything… wait what? That’s insane! An equally insane counter argument would be that you must want to hire child rapist, sexual abusers and murders to play those types of roles. These are both ridiculous accusations. It’s also interesting to note that if I was upset because a gay man was playing a straight character I would be instantly labeled a homophobic bigot. However, I don’t have any problem with an LGBTQ actor playing any sexual orientation they want. So does that mean I also want to go back to the days of Greece where only straight/gay men played all the roles? Um no. What utter nonsense is this?
I agree with you most entirely, but I do think Disney is in a tougher spot than you may think. The general public has shown to be very supportive of LGBT characters like “Kurt Hummel”, “Jack McFarland”, and “Mitchell Pritchett” but they all fulfill the stereotypes. You have a character like Poe Dameron show up and people react very harshly to the idea. I wish Disney handled this better, but frankly I’m not surprised.
Grace you hit the nail on the head with this. I agree and disagree with you on things as we do as people. But I’m so glad you took the words right of my mouth. This is just a dumb, tone deaf decision. VEry ignorant. Not saying only lgbt actors can play lgbt characters but for a watershed moment like this especially with Disney, you need to get this right.
Okay I love that disney is finally having an “OPENLY” GAY CHARACTER I understand some people want the character to be gay irl but I think we should acknowledge the fact Disney is EVEN doing a gay character they always say they have a gay character but it’s never noticeable or they barely even give them screen time now what I dont like is that Disney is making a gay sound weak and in need of strength but ig ….progress????
I don’t think I’ve ever commented on a YouTube article after years of reading spiteful and unrelated homophobic slurs. It’s refreshing to see healthy positive debate in favour of LGBT equality. As a gay man born and living in London, very familiar with Jack Whitehall, I was initially less concerned about casting a straight man in a gay role compared to reservations of Jack Whitehall doing it – he’s a standup comedian first and foremost, with limited and sketchy TV acting performances. I’ve watched innumerable gay films, some great films, a lot of which played by straight actors – and played very well. The key and most poignant issue that you rightly call out is that Jack’s character is said to be ‘effete and very camp’ – this is somewhat expected by Jack who is (as a straight man) himself quite ‘effete and camp’ (at least in the on stage / TV personality he portrays). I myself am comfortable in myself and sexuality to not take offence from such stereotypes – but you are 100% correct in the impression this gives less confident, assertive LGBT’ers. Let’s hope Jack and/or the production team are reading these articles and comments and not progressing to undermine the societal equality that has otherwise been gained
(Looks at Beauty and the Beast 2017 Box office Results): Box office $1.264 billion What I’m tired of is how the backlash is just meaningless in the end when the movie turns a profit. IF you honestly don’t agree with Disney’s portrayal of the LGBT community then don’t support these movies seriously it’s not that hard. Don’t put down the money for that ticket and they’ll get it.
another argument against a straigth man playing a gay man is that so far there were not that many openly gay actors playing straight characters. let’s say in 50 years when gay/lesbians/trans/etc played a lot of straight/cis characters nobody will pat an eye if a straight man played a gay man, but we’re not there yet.
grace, please! I’m gay, and I don’t have a problem with stereotypical characters. if it is explicitly clear that his character is gay and not just the affects of one. we shouldn’t be so forceful about this. the very fact that a corporate brand geared towards a family friendly audience is going out of their way to define themselves as aligned with the lgbtq+ community speaks volumes. on the othe hand if jack whitehalls character is dumb or clumsy or has anything to do with the antagonists i’m out!
The thing is a lot of brits will understand why they have described the character like this. But Americans won’t. This is because Whitehall is much like this description. But what annoys me is why can’t Disney create a non stereotypical gay person. This is why there are gay people who are confused with their sexuality bc they don’t fit the box that gay people are told they are.
It’s a bit of a double edge sword. Sadly I think this might pull focus from the movie or it might be like Beauty and the Beast where it’s brought up by the people perusal the movie but then quickly forgot about. Seems like any role representing a group has to go through that awkward and painful phase where outdated traits are used.
Ugh I love your reviews. I relate and understand your P.O.V. I just feel if you’re casting for a gay role why not have an lgbt actor, it just to me make sense. It’d provide more opportunities for the lgbt community and a chance to tell a story that allows other members of the community to relate with. It’d just be nice for the stereotype enigma to not be present.
I think playing a stereotypical gay man can have its entertainment value (i.e Jack from Will and Grace) but like the example you gave with asking the Rock to put his shirt on there is a way to tastefully do it (no pun intended lol). As for casting a straight man I dont believe sexual orientation should be an issue but it should be investigated whether or not the role was offered to members of the gay community as well. I never had a problem with Alan Cumming playing Nightcrawler in X2 and I believe he had already come out then.
My opinion on the gay stereotype is it’s mostly in comedy movies, that’s the point it’s supposed to be funny! Even us gays make fun of the stereotype. If the gay stereotype was in a serious movie then yea that’s a problem. Think of it this way, a comedy with black actors are gonna use the stereotypical black comedy, language and mannerisms. Btw. Love your website 💕
I personally am not lgbt but to me that description could go the way you are interprating it, but I have a large amount of lgtb friends and they are comics, they are genuinly hillariouse people and to me it sounds like the description could be describing either. But the character being timid probably was not a smart move.
With criticism that a straight person shouldn’t play a gay character, where do we draw a line? Should no straight person be allowed to take a role because the sexual preference of the character their portraying? Does the opposite apply where a person who identifies as homosexual should not be allowed to portray a heterosexual character? How far down the P.C. Rabbit hole do we want to go or wouldn’t it be better to cast the actor that can best play and convey the complex emotions of a character regardless of their real-world leanings whatever they may be?
I saw a comment that by this criteria only serial killers ahould play serial killers. I do think we should not put barriers in the opportunities for both gay and straight actors and focus more on who has the acting skills to carry on the role? I wouldn’t mind a gay actor playing a straight character tbh (Luke Evans is indeed everyone s example, im sure there should be more) so I do not think a straight man playing a gay character should be an issue. Also Jack is funny and campy himself (and straight, so it is not a defining characteristic for the gay community), he is not gonna do method acting so this could be good. Now weather i trust the writers with a great script, that is another story altogether…
I thought we were striving for a world where the orientation of the performer shouldn’t matter. Should we insist that only straight people should play straight? Yes. It would help if a gay character was played by a gay actor, especially if gay actors find it hard to get work. But if that’s not an issue (if there’s equal opportunity), then why not have Whitehall play the part? Because there’s still a large segment of the population that prefers their gays in the closet. People should be allowed to be who they are. Btw. I’ve seen Whitehall’s work. Him playing effeminate won’t be a stretch. Check him out.
Disney’s problem is they think they deserve a medal for including a gay character as a major part of a film. Why do they need to make an announcement about it? It would have been much better if they announced Jack Whitehall is playing Emily Blunts brother and discussed the role the character plays in the story. And the fact that he’s gay could have been a part of his character revealed in the film in a natural and nuanced way. Simply announcing ‘oh he’s gay’ doesn’t mean that the story will show this or give adequate representation to the character. I like Jack Whitehall and think the traits described are his ‘type’ in terms of previous roles. The fact that the character is gay has little bearing on Jack being able to portray the character effectively
I think we’re going crazy with this. Acting is the art of interpreting different characters but this current society is harming both the heteros and the LGBT community, who are being reduced to exclusively interpreting characters from their community. We don’t advance we just pretend to do it while we’re actually going back.
I am homosexual and I do not see why a gay actor has to play a gay role? What is the issue seriously? Yes I am not one for gay characters being portrayed as camp and bed hopping and flamboyant as that doesn’t represent me or the majority of the gay community. But people finding issue with him playing the part because he is straight himself is ridiculous. Disney it’s self is camp and flamboyant and OTT! People get some perspective ok?
As a gay man, I have no problem with straight actors playing gay roles. It’s acting. Gay men have been playing straight characters for years. Gay men should not be forced to only play gay roles and straight men should not be forced to play only straight roles. As far as this particular character, I think we need to see it before making any judgements. As much as I do not want gay characters to be stereotypes, I also do not want gay characters to have to be stiff “nuanced” characters all the time either. We can laugh at ourselves sometimes. Lighten up everybody. It’s just one movie, and it’s not a particularly important one.
To be fair, Jack Whitehall is one of the campest straight men alive. If you watch any tv programme that has featured him you soon see that Jack Whitehall is just this camp, fragile and hilarious guy and that’s the character he always plays. However, Disney probably should have just stuck with a non-stereotypical person. But he’ll still be great and we should support him, as he is clearly very ambitious in wanting this role and he really wants to break America. Also it’s not his fault how he was cast, you can play a character you don’t agree with and this is his stepping stone into bigger things. I think Jack might bring a bigger British audience as well, because he’s famous and popular here…
I personally think that Disney needs to leave the lgbt stuff alone. Let stuff for kids be innocent. People wonder why kids say and do the things they do, well it’s because of stuff like this. When I was little perusal Disney movies and cartoons I wasn’t thinking about lgbt stuff and the differnt theories that are all over the internet about these cartoon characters talking about them being depressed and dying, being on drugs, and all this imagination stuff. I was just thinking these are cute fun characters to watch. It’s a shame what something that has been around for so long has come to. It’s confirmed nothing is innocent anymore and it’s frustrating
So I take it non of you know Jack Whitehall? He won’t be PLAYING camp, he IS camp. Look him up on YouTube. You can yell at Disney all you want for hiring him, but don’t get mad at Jack for being who he is. It would be like getting mad at The Rock for being too tall. Guy can’t help it. Ironically everybody already think Jack is gay because of how camp he is. Like, my gay friends were like “No way he’s straight” but all of a sudden everybody just assume he’s straight. Pretty sure Jack has alluded to being bisexual in the past but if he doesn’t want to talk about it anymore that’s he’s choice.
I’m not sure about the argument that only lbgt actors can play lbgt characters since many lbgt actors have long been playing straight characters. The nuance argument could be explored though this movie seems very much a broad comedy, with many actors playing it such. No one hires the Rock for nuance. All the characters seem cartoonish. Is Ray Gillette on “Archer” a homophobic stereotype, as Adam Reed portrays the comedy in broad strokes? My question would be of tone. What is the tone of the portrayal? Mean? Insensitive? I would be interested in more information, but I honestly wasn’t on the “Jungle Cruise” boat to begin with.
It shouldn’t matter either way if he or the character is gay first jack Whitehall is one of Britain’s best comics right now and the only good reason to have a problem with his selection is that someone else did a better job auditioning its acting as in pretending and as for the character if the only important thing about him is that he’s gay he’s a bad character he should be a funny interesting person who happens to be gay
I’m kinda split on this. On the one hand I understand fully why it would have been great if a gay actor were to play this character considering this will be the first truly openly gay Disney character. But moving forward I don’t think it’s a good idea to say that only gay actors can play gay characters because in the spirit of fairness the opposite would have to be true. It would be a travesty to limit gay characters to only playing gay roles. This isn’t a great example but it’s the first thing that came to my mind but NPH did a fantastic job on How I Met Your Mother as a womanising straight man. If they were of the mindset that he can’t play that because he’s gay we would have lost out on a great performance. A more recent example to argue the other side of this debate is looking at a recent movie like Call Me By Your Name. Those straight actors did a fantastic job portraying gay characters. I say if an actor can approach these kind of roles in a respectful way, give them a chance. On a side note, the characterization Disney decided to take with the character is hella problematic