The highly anticipated Beauty and the Beast opens this weekend, but the movie is attracting critics as well as supporters.  One of these is an Alabama drive-in theatre who said that it would not be showing the new Disney movie earlier this March. In a Facebook post, the Henagar Drive-in Theatre stated that they would not show Beauty and the Beast due to the appearance of a gay character. The post said that the reason for this was religious, with theatre owners saying homosexuality was ungodly, and announcing that the theatre would continue to show wholesome movies without sex, nudity, homosexuality, or foul language. In addition, Russia placed an age restriction on the movie, only permitting people over the age of 16 to see the movie after lawmaker Vitaly Milonov petitioned to have the movie banned for “shameless propaganda of sin and sexual perversion.” Russia has had a history of opposing gay rights in the past, passing laws that ban gay pride parades and other “propaganda.”

 Gaston’s sidekick, LeFou, is the first openly gay character in a Disney film, according to the New York Times. At the end of the movie, LeFou dances with another man, which, according to Josh Gad who plays LeFou is subtle and effective at sending a message of inclusiveness that director Bill Condon tries to convey throughout the film. Gad tells viewers to focus on Gaston’s character, how Gaston is able to have people attack someone they have never met, and how he convinces people that someone different is a danger. Some believe this is a comment on homophobia.

 At this point in time, homosexuality has become a permanent part of our culture, and movies are an extension of that. Portraying a character as gay adds diversity to the character roster and more accurately portrays demographics of people watching the film. Disney has taken an interesting initiative, and while it was met with some controversy, the decision is mostly met with positive feedback: “I think it’s great that Disney is being more inclusive with their casting,” said junior Lily Monaghan. The general consensus among most people is that they are happy that Disney is being more inclusive.