It’s time for queer representation in cartoons and animation

Walt Disney Animation Studios is set to release Strange World, featuring its first ever openly gay romance in an animated feature.

The upcoming adventure follows the Claudes, a family of ardent explorers, as they embark on a fantastical adventure into the deep, uncharted, and treacherous land of Avalonea. 

The retro sci-fi styled film, featuring the voice talents of Jake Gyllenhaal, Gabrielle Union, Lucy Liu, Dennis Quaid and Jaboukie Young-White, was largely by classic pulp magazines, said director Don Hill. “They were big adventures in which a group of explorers might discover a hidden world of ancient creatures. They’ve been a huge inspiration for Strange World.”

Disney Animation Studios showcased three scenes from the film during France’s Annecy Animation Festival, revealing a glimpse of the studio’s first on-screen same-sex romance between two teenage boys: Ethan Claude and his school’s superstar Diazo.

French art director Matthieu Saghezchi confirmed the romance on twitter, stating “Just saw the very first glimpse into Disney’s Strange World. It features the first openly gay teen romance in a Disney feature!” 

Just saw the very first glimpse into #Disney ‘s #StrangeWorld at the #Annecy2022 festival – it features the first openly gay teen romance in a disney feature!!! ????️‍???? #RepresentationMatters pic.twitter.com/H1bEjyrSV1

— Matthieu Saghezchi (@MSaghezchi) June 17, 2022

While it may be the first gay teen romance in a Disney feature (that’s a lot of qualifiers), Disney hasn’t been shying away from the queer representation steps lately. Strange World’s romance tracks the path laid by Disney-Pixar’s recent film Lightyear, which included a same-sex kiss that resulted in the film’s ban in 14 countries. Disney refused to remove the kiss, despite all the pushback—and looks to be backing its creators once again with Strange World.

Strange World will be hitting cinemas on November 23, 2022.