Same-Sex Kiss Restored In ‘Lightyear’ Following Anger Over Disney’s Support Of ‘Don’t Say Gay’ Republicans

Buzz Lightyear action figure with space background and excerpt from Pixar statement accusing Disney of squashing queer moments

Photo via Ralf Steinberger/Flickr (CC BY 2.0), @JuddLegum/Twitter

March 21, 2022, 10:18 am

Disney has reportedly reversed course on a kiss between two queer partners in the upcoming Toy Story franchise entry Lightyear after the moment was cut from the film. According to Variety, the kiss, which was between significant character Hawthorne and a woman she’s in a “meaningful” relationship with, has been put back in the film not long after Pixar workers published a statement accusing Disney of stomping on every queer moment included in their films.

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This accusation followed the revelation that Disney donated money to every Republican politician in Florida who supported the so-called “Don’t Say Gay” bill that recently passed in the state. The bill threatens educators with lawsuits if they are found in violation of vague language prohibiting the discussion of sexual orientation or gender identity.

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“We at Pixar have personally witnessed beautiful stories, full of diverse characters, come back from Disney corporate reviews shaved down to crumbs of what they once were,” the letter read. “Nearly every moment of overtly gay affection is cut at Disney’s behest, regardless of when there is protest from both the creative teams and executive leadership at Pixar.”

Disney has so far declined to comment on the cut or restoration of the kiss in Lightyear and whether either move was their idea. All that has been confirmed is that the kiss was put back into the movie last week, definitely after Disney had to issue an apology and pledge to “pause” donations to Florida politicians while they review how much of their money goes to support bigotry.

Pixar employees who spoke with Variety anonymously confirmed an atmosphere of hesitation at the animation studio in spite of a general desire to create better LGBTQ+ representation for kids and adults alike. Though some described a kind of “self-censorship” among Pixar workers, it all appears to be around the fear that Disney will come back around and censor queer characters for them, possibly at the behest of countries that restrict LGGBTQ+ rights.

“Effectively, Pixar engaged in self-censorship, say these sources, out of an abiding belief that LGBTQ content wouldn’t get past Disney review because Disney has needed the films to play in markets traditionally hostile to LGBTQ people: namely China, Russia, much of West Asia and in the American South,” Variety’s Adam B. Vary reports.

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Many were relieved to see Disney CEO Bob Chapek apologize for the ongoing and frequent donations to homophobic and transphobic Republicans, but others were skeptical, assuming that the donation “pause” would end as soon as people forgot about the issue. Others pointed out that any action taken by Disney is now far too little and late, as the “Don’t Say Gay” bill already passed the Florida legislature and Governor Ron DeSantis is expected to sign it.

LGBTQ+ folks and allies will continue to keep an eye on Disney, and plenty of them are happy about the restoration of a little bit of representation in the upcoming film. Others, however, are wondering when they’re going to get more than small little snippets of acknowledging queer existence any time Disney is caught being bigoted again.