The Disney+ Moon Knight star Oscar Isaac slammed The Walt Disney Company for its donations to Florida politicians who supported the “Don’t Say Gay” bill during a March 22 virtual press, according to IndieWire. The press event took place on the same day as the LGBTQIA+ Disney cast members and allies staged a full-scale walkout over the company’s response – and lack thereof – to the anti-gay legislation. The former Poe Dameron actor also said he fully supported the walkout.
Disney LGBTQIA+ employees and their allies planned a virtual and in-person walkout for a full day of protest against Disney CEO Bob Chapek’s handling of the “Don’t Say Gay” bill and the financial support of politicians who backed the harmful anti-gay legislation, and response to the backlash. When an entertainment reporter asked about Isaac’s opinions on the Disney walkout during a Moon Knight press junket—the actor’s attendance at the tour was probably contractual as reported by Variety—he said:
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I guess my comment would be [starts singing] gay gay gay gay gay gay gay gay gay gay gay gayyyyyy! Yeah, it’s an absolutely ridiculous law. It’s insane. It’s insanity. And I hope that Disney as a company comes out as forcefully as possible against this idea.
Lucasfilm and ESPN Support LGBTQ+ Fans
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Although Chapek has issued an apology to cast members for Disney’s initial’s lack of response to Florida’s “Don’t Say Gay” bill that admitted he let LGBTQIA+ employees and their allies down and stated he needed to be “a stronger ally,” after Pixar employees made allegations that in the animated films “nearly every moment of overtly gay affection is cut at Disney’s behest, regardless of when there is a protest from both the creative teams and executive leadership at Pixar.”
Some Disney-owned companies previously posted statements of support for the LGBTQ+ community on social media, including Isaac’s former studio, Lucasfilm, which showed its support of the LGBTQIA+ community on Instagram on March 11. The post read, “Lucasfilm stands with the LGBTQIA+ community within our studios, within our fandom, and across the entire world. We resoundingly and unequivocally denounce the legislations in Florida, Texas, Idaho, and beyond that target the community and infringe upon their human rights. Lucasfilm has, and always will, support the values of hope, courage, and community, and are dedicated to making sure that we embody those values better than ever before.”
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On March 22, the official day of the walkout, only a handful of the Disney-owned companies tweeted to support the LGBTQIA+ community and the cast members participating in the walkout, notably ESPN and Hulu. “ESPN believes in inclusivity and denounces legislation and actions across the United States that infringe on any human rights. We stand with our LGBTQIA+ colleagues, friends, families, and fans,” ESPN tweeted in a thread linking to stories about LGBTQIA+ athletes who are at the center of many anti-gay legislation in America.
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ESPN continued, “We’ll continue to partner with organizations that support the LGBTQIA+ community, be accountable where we fall short of expectations, and never stop telling stories about LGBTQIA+ athletes, like the ones we’ll be sharing in this thread.”
