Disney has just dropped the first trailer for Jungle Cruise, the latest cinematic incarnation of one of its iconic theme park rides. The film will also feature an out-gay character in a supporting role…though he barely appears in the first trailer.
Jungle Cruise follows in the mold of movie classics like The African Queen, Fitzcarraldo and possibly Anaconda by finding explorer Lily Houghton (played by Emily Blunt) searching for a fabled tree that offers the cure for a disease. To find the cure, she must journey upriver into the jungle, guided by the eccentric Captain Frank (Dwayne Johnson).
Related: Jack Whitehall handles The Rock’s snake in first look at Disney’s “Jungle Cruise”
Reports from filming have made quite a big deal about Lily’s younger brother McGregor (played by Jack Whitehall) being played as something of a campy gay man. The choices to play the character as an over-the-top stereotype, and to have a straight actor playing such a stereotypical role, have attracted controversy. Disney had previously attracted criticism for claiming the character Lefou in the live-action Beauty and the Beast remake was also gay, though nothing in the film specifically identified him as such.
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Jungle Cruise opens July 24 2020 in cinemas.
Watch:
frenchbug
The fact there is no line reading in the trailer from Jack Whitehall’s character even thought he had clearly been written in for comic relief is a really really really bad sign at to whether the performance will be subtle/acceptable or not.
And I say that as someone who likes JW!
Cam
My guess is they will make him a sexless neutered clown, ala the character on Modern Family.
Max
Whitehall is so English that he’s cast as gay? gads, but he’s funny IMHO
thisiswhatithunk
What a soulless, artless piece of junk. Emily blunt and her teeth. The Rock and his trademark one note delivery and JW playing gay because there are no decent gay actors out there who could possibly fill his piss poor boots. I hate Disney. It’s like they’re on a mission with Marvel to destroy cinema as we know it.
PoetDaddy
You sound like fun.
thisiswhatithunk
Best you got? Not very poetic. Come on Daddy crush me with your acid wit! Or your penis. I’m cool with either 🙂
UlfRaynor
Critics thought Mozart was a flashy nobody who would never amount to anything as well.
They were also wrong.
Whats Scorsese’s next film about again, let’s guess, stereotypical Italian/latino guys with mafia/mob connections being poster boy’s for male toxicity?
Been there, done that (a million times).
OzJosh
Those who know Whitehall’s schtick will immediately guess that the character will be in ineffectual, fey fop, who will scream and freak out to provide the comic relief in all the action sequences. Are we really supposed to believe this is progress?
Brian
What else could it possibly be? I don’t know why they would have their first gay character in a movie set in a time where virtually nobody was openly gay. I imagine it’s just so Dwayne Johnson can discover that he’s gay and be heroically cool with it.
Josh447
Hmm the Rock may like co??ck you say. I might actually be able to stomach him if he came out.
MacAdvisor
This seems like African Queen with the Rock as produced by Disney. Please tell me the Rock’s character isn’t Capt. Allnut.
skeldare
I blinked and missed him in the trailer, thankfully you grabbed a screenshot.
jorgecruz
I swear there must have been a secret hollywood meeting 15 years ago where everyone decided that if they wanted to make a shitty, unoriginal movie, it had to include The Rock.
Could he be any more bland and lackluster?