Disneyâs âBeauty and the Beastâ hits theaters in less than a week and promotion for the highly anticipated live-action version of the hit animated film is in overdrive.
The filmâs star, Emma Watson, recently sat down for an in-depth 40-plus-minute interview with Entertainment Weekly on Sirius XM, and it wasnât long before the conversation turned to one of the filmâs most controversial moments: the inclusion of what has been called the entertainment giantâs first âexclusively gayâ character.
âI think that whatâs so fantastic about Joshâs performance is that itâs so subtle,â Watson said, referring to Josh Gadâs portrayal of the character LeFou, who was previously described as âsomebody who on one day wants to be Gaston and on another day wants to kiss Gaston. ... Itâs somebody whoâs just realizing that he has these feelings,â by the filmâs director, Bill Condon.
âItâs always like, does he idolize Gaston? Is he in love with Gaston? Whatâs the relationship there? And I think itâs incredibly subtle, to be perfectly honest,â Watson noted.
Still, the actress cautioned against audiences expecting too much from the moment.
âI donât want people going into this movie thinking that thereâs like a huge narrative there,â she said. âThere really isnât. Itâs incredibly subtle, and itâs kind of a play on having the audience go, âIs it, or is it not?â I think itâs fun. I love the ambiguity there.â
Not everyone thinks the inclusion of the gay character, however subtle, is âfun,â though.
The film has received harsh criticism from conservative religious groups and businesses who are outraged by LeFou being portrayed as gay.
In fact, an Alabama theater is refusing to show the film, right-wing watchdog group One Million Moms is freaking out because of the character and a blogger recently made waves after writing a piece about her decision to cancel her Disney vacation over the queer subplot.
Watch the full interview here.