Once Again, LGBTQ Sexuality “Distracts From The Plot”

UGH! This keeps happening to the LGBTQ community.

I love superheroes movies just as much as the next gay. When the first X-Men film came out, I had my mother buy me every individual action figure (with a heavy focus on Rogue) and completely geeked out seeing my favorite heroes – who were always different – on screen. I was nine when those films came out and I still remember watching them like it was yesterday. It has been my entire life that I’m still waiting for an LGBTQ character to appear on screen in one of the most popular superhero films such as Marvel or DC.

Randomly, Disney’s live-action Beauty and The Beast was supposed to have a gay character. While openly gay actor, Luke Evans, was playing Gaston – I couldn’t quite put my finger on who exactly would be playing a gay guy – Chip?! It was Gaston’s minion – what’s his face – who would be seen in a moment dancing with a man. Which, really isn’t necessarily so – ahem, gay? Then, we are supposed to have this uber-lesbian in Power Rangers that is simply winked at during dialogue. Both of these events were blasted and promoted by nearly every LGBTQ blog in existence, yet had us craving more.

Which leads me to analyzing Marvel’s latest hit, Thor: Ragnarok. About-To-Be-A-List actress, Tessa Thompson, who co-stars in the film as superhero Valkyrie, who is known to comic book fans as a bisexual badass. Thompson took to Twitter to reveal her character in the Marvel Cinematic Universe (MCU) is indeed portrayed as bisexual in the film:

YES! Val is Bi in the comics & I was faithful to that in her depiction. But her sexuality isn’t explicitly addressed in Thor: Ragnarok. https://t.co/hmb5lYN5to

— Tessa Thompson (@TessaThompson_x) October 23, 2017

As expected, the LGBTQ community throws a god damn disco thinking that we’re about to have our first openly gay character in the MCU. I’m sure fan fiction was written that Valkyrie ends up dating Scarlet Witch or something incredibly far-fetched but also believable. We’re so excited to see any type of LGBTQ representation portrayed on screen that we don’t care! Anything can be better than a wink to the camera that someone is gay. Because, I mean, this is the 1950s after all.

Well, no. We didn’t even get a wink this time. While I appreciate Thompson’s excitement and passion to representing for the LGBTQ community – Marvel has failed us and actually cut the scene indicating that her character would be involved in same-sex relations.

According to Gizmodo, Thompson claims:

“Thompson lobbied director Taika Waititi to shoot a small moment including a woman walking out of Valkyrie’s bedroom. Despite Thompson and Waititi fighting for the brief moment to stay in the film, it was eventually cut, because it was considered a “distraction” from the expository dialogue going on elsewhere.”

Thompson herself states:

“There were things that we talked about that we allowed to exist in the characterization, but maybe not be explicit in the film. There’s a great shot of me falling back from one of my sisters who’s just been slain [in the Valkyrie flashback with Hela]. In my mind, that was my lover.”

Yet again we are cheated out of an LGBTQ relationship on screen. Unfortunately, we won’t even see a wink this time. Sigh. I mean, I am not some keyboard warrior. I understand what the suits’ vision for the film. But, you know what, it really stinks. It stinks that we can have many heterosexual relationships to showcase globally but unfortunately, a gay relationship just doesn’t fit into the story. If we continue to band together, I do believe our favorite superhero films won’t feel the need to have a same-sex relationship – or wink – in their films, but it is what their audience wants. These people are fictional superheroes fighting aliens in other dimensions for crying out loud. Is a same-sex relationship so off key?!

Do you believe we’ll be spotting an actual LGBTQ character in superhero films anytime soon?!