LGBTQ+ representation in film — especially in major tentpole franchises — is something that gets a lot of talk, but not necessarily a lot of significant follow through. While much has been made about queer characters appearing, often times those appearances are brief and have very little overall story significance. That’s not the case with the upcoming The New Mutants which will see the relationship between Dani Moonstar (Blu Hunt) and Wolfsbane (Maisie Williams) as a central feature of the plot, and now director Josh Boone is taking a shot at another major film that he feels fell very short with representation — Star Wars: The Rise of Skywalker.
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Boone told TooFab that the conclusion to the Skywalker Saga was the “most embarrassing” example of LGBTQ+ representation.
“It was just somebody in the background and [the filmmakers] were like, ‘We’ll put out articles as if this is something you should pay attention to,” Boone said.
The moment Boone is referring to is an extremely brief moment near the end of The Rise of Skywalker in which two pilots share a same-sex kiss in the background. The scene, despite being brief, was enough to prompt some censorship in order for it to be accepted in certain international markets.
In contrast, the relationship between Moonstar and Wolfsbane in The New Mutants is more central and it’s something that Hunt said felt very organic for her as an actor to bring to life and also felt extremely powerful as well.
“That aspect, it didn’t feel, I didn’t feel the pressure of that as much because it just felt so natural and so organic for me,” Hunt said. “I have dated girls and it just felt cool. I just got to explore that part of myself in this movie. I never felt like I was taking a role that didn’t belong to me.”
“It felt really powerful to play,” she continued. “it felt really powerful to play a female character who was not connected to the men in the movie at all, other than just being their friend. And that was really, really, really cool.”
“People ask me, ‘What are you most excited for people to see?’” Boone adds. “Just seeing those two girls under that dome looking up is really cool to see in a movie. It’s just as exciting as all of the action and the Marvel stuff.”
The New Mutants hits theaters on August 28. Tickets are available now.
