Bill Condon didn’t think Beauty And The Beast’s "gay moment" was a big deal

While Condon enjoys that certain countries refused to screen the film because of it, he was less enthused that it was “inaccurately presented as some kind of groundbreaking moment.” That wasn’t his intention, he told The Hollywood Reporter. In his mind, it was “just the great inclusivity of a wonderful musical.” Condon hoped to imbue a little humanity in Lefou, who is “a punching bag, he’s not a character, so you turn them into people.”

Additionally, Condon said he included it because of Howard Ashman, the legendary late Disney composer who wrote the original score. Ashman was also gay, and Condon attributed some of the “gay sensibility going on there” to him. However, it ultimately served as a nice grace note for a supporting character. “It was just the completion of a story that started with LeFou pulling Gaston into a hug and saying, ‘Too much?’ and Gaston looking around nervously and saying, ‘Yeah.'”

That answer probably won’t satisfy anyone, neither those who think Condon’s a demon for including real human experiences in a Disney movie nor those who found the moment pandering. However, he’s right that his films and sensibility get singled out because “despite everything, we still live in a boy culture.”

“Movies are a boy culture,” he said. “The tastemakers, all of that stuff. So I’ve really enjoyed doing it from a different sensibility. When you watch Kinsey, it’s funny. It’s uncomfortable and funny because I do think there’s a specific gay sensibility and sense of humor that’s different from a more mainstream approach.”