Yeah this
I didn't see it myself but will watch the movie a second time without the family on my Oled so will watch for it :)
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Kelly Marie Tran believes Raya is gay (Vanity Fair)
- Thread starter Zen
- Start date
I didn't see it myself but will watch the movie a second time without the family on my Oled so will watch for it :)
Yeah as soon as I saw those characters interact I was all "So Disney are being to be cowards about this, huh" I just expect it at this point.
^^^
Put it in the movie or it doesn't count.
Even in the movie Raya and Namaari vibes were painfully platonic after the first 5 seconds of their first interaction.
It's not like many SEA countries have censorship/ media authorities that are openly supportive of LGBT characters. Here in Singapore, if the film were to have a gay couple it will automatically be an M18 or R21. It'll be super ironic to make a film inspired by SEA culture, only having to self censor for the market because you can't sell the film to kids otherwise.
It is honestly quite sad.
I didn't really get a lesbian vibe from Raya though.
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Not until Disney shows a non-hetero relationship explicitly. People are getting tired of winks and nudges including me. But that's all the more reason we need more focus on these statements IMO. It's leading to more pressure on them
That's why I think it's important actors and creators continue to state 'yeah they're gay' and make people question why it isn't in the movies. Better than them staying silent.
This. I respect KMT for what she's saying, but it's just not enough if the company keeps sweeping it under a rug.
I laughed. I sighed. :(
Maybe Disney will do a gay comic hero first then.
For how state of the art their animating tech and knowhow is, it's sorta incredible how their story telling stops short with this one specific hang up. It's so silly.
Edit: sorry for double post 🙏
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Hadn't heard of this before, thanks for the recommendation!
This is how I feel as well. Its all good and well to say the character is part of the lgbt group however if you do not act on it then it just seems like pandering. Don't just say words, put action behind it!
The two characters were constantly against one another until the very end. I don't see any romantic tension between the two at all, just standard rivalry. If anything I feel like there's a bit more between Raya and Susu.
I mean, it was a world full of betrayal and distrust. That was kind of the point of the film—the world was broken and people like Namaari were raised that way out of self-preservation. She didn't think when she attempted to steal the gem that it would break and bring about the apocalypse. She was just thinking about her people.
Also Raya and Namaari were both responsible
for Sisu getting shot. Namaari shouldn't have kept holding onto the trigger and Raya shouldn't have been so hasty to jump in with somebody who had their hand on a trigger.
Funny considering their TV shows are featuring LGBT characters more and more. I dunno why the film has been so slow.
I don't really think there's anything in the movie indicating her sexuality. Of course, ppl can project what they'd like onto characters — there just isn't anything in the movie that points toward this (or in any other direction).
They want to make all of the money which means catering to countries where it's not tolerated.
This is where I am. I'd actually appreciate it to be in the movie
Well, right now they aren't making ANY money so they might as well throw the gays like me something since nobody is going to theaters anyways.
It seems to me that China is the stumbling block, but then I remember that half of the US population seem like a bunch of intolerant shitheads. I wish for my son's sake that he would have more positive representation in popular media. He's always so excited for the crumbs that do manage to make it through.
Yeah, me and my gf were trying to kinda predict stuff and we both predicted a romance and there was none at all which is surprising but a nice change.
If there was going to be a romance there was only one character it would happen with so make sense when it comes to the shipping.
There was a part in the movie where I almost thought they were going to go for it. I could see it.
This is cool to hear, but if it's not in the movie it ultimately means very little. If Disney hadn't spent the last 4 or so years hiding queer characters in the background or cutting them out for foreign distribution, this would mean a lot more. While their TV shows are becoming more inclusive, and actually featuring queer leads, representation in their films is shockingly stagnant. It's awesome that the actress publicly said the character is gay, but if it doesn't make it into the feature, Disney can just act like it is merely the actor's interpretation.
For a film to be successful it has to make a billion dollars and do incredibly well in international market while tv series dont have that pressure.
When Legend of Korra ended it got a ton of positive press and since Steven Universe didnt need to sell to China, Malaysia or Saudia Arabia you can tell the network "Well people are going to really give this free positive press"
How a Nickelodeon Cartoon Became One of the Most Powerful, Subversive Shows of 2014
A show for kids that aired its final season entirely online could have the power to change children’s TV forever. Yes, really.
What Disney is trying to do is get that positive free press that Legend of Korra got while at the same time not really showing anything that might offend an audience in particular the international market. They want to get "OMG finally an LGBT character in Star Wars" when its really two incredibly minor character in the background when LoK did more 6 years ago.
That's neat and all, but it's not 2005 anymore. Kind of tired of praising these quasi-gay relationships.
Namaari gave Raya her pendant which was clearly precious to her, and they call each other Dep la. While Disney decided to make it mean "best friend" in their canon, "dep" means beautiful in Vietnamese.
Also, there is the saying that the line between love and hate is thin. Their antagonistic relationship can easily come off as that to many. It's friends-to-enemies-to-lovers. Just super streamlined.
Having just finished the movie, I see where she's coming from.
But we need to get past this wink wink nudge nudge shit if we want to make real strides for actual representation.
But we shouldn't have to connect dots, it should be front facing.
Absolutely. We need to get past this "Oh they're just close cousins" shit.
But we need to get past this wink wink nudge nudge shit if we want to make real strides for actual representation.
I mean the -to lovers part isn't there because they just end the story a day after the climax. It's wishful thinking and you can certainly connect the dots.
But we shouldn't have to connect dots, it should be front facing.
Absolutely. We need to get past this "Oh they're just close cousins" shit.
Eh, that's a bit much. Their last 3 major TV animation projects have had prominent LGBTQ+ characters.
But...those also aren't the movies they expect to gross 600 million every time out. So...:🤷:
You know what, Disney wouldn't let a star like KMT go out there and say that she sees Raya as gay and that she ships her with Namaari like this...they are normally fiercely protective of this stuff, so I'm hoping either this is sanctioned PR by Disney trying to gauge the reaction of the audience or it could just be KMT trying to force Disney's hand haha like Oscar tried doing with Poe in Star Wars.
Oh of course. I don't disagree at all. I'm tired of Disney and want them to stop implying stuff. It would be different if we live in a time where LGBTQ+ anything was more prevalent in media, but it isn't.
I was just explaining what the framing is for people who see Raya and Namaari as potentially romantic since that user was saying they didn't really see it.
It wouldn't fix the fact that Raya and Namaari as a couple should be stated 100% with a kiss or something, but I think those simple changes would have tightened the narrative up a bit and made a stronger case for their relationship.
Oh of course. I don't disagree at all. I'm tired of Disney and want them to stop implying stuff. It would be different if we live in a time where LGBTQ+ anything was more prevalent in media, but it isn't.
I was just explaining what the framing is for people who see Raya and Namaari as potentially romantic since that user was saying they didn't really see it.
Honestly, I feel like they could have adjusted just a few things and things would have at least been more obvious. Make it so Raya and Namaari had actually met before when they were even younger and had been friends for longer. They could have pushed in a little bit of flirting in and familiar hand holding/casual touches to add to the notion that they liked each other. Some scenes of them being friends doing friend things, but with awkward shy preteen behavior...All of that would have made the betrayal more effective, too.
Also, they could have made it so the scene in Tail wasn't their first encounter in 6 years to imply a messy history with each other in the time skip. Maybe a cat-and-mouse chase sort of thing...?
That's all they needed to do to add a little bit more to their relationship, and then maybe at least get LOK-levels of bold with a hand hold and a blush at the end?
Also, they could have made it so the scene in Tail wasn't their first encounter in 6 years to imply a messy history with each other in the time skip. Maybe a cat-and-mouse chase sort of thing...?
That's all they needed to do to add a little bit more to their relationship, and then maybe at least get LOK-levels of bold with a hand hold and a blush at the end?
It wouldn't fix the fact that Raya and Namaari as a couple should be stated 100% with a kiss or something, but I think those simple changes would have tightened the narrative up a bit and made a stronger case for their relationship.
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This is good PR for certain markets, but nothing points to that in the movie. Everything is fine, progressive and inclusive until a government agency demands to cut an unnoticeable same-sex kiss in the background of one scene.
Isn't it nice to have your cake and eat it too?
I also suspect that the moment a few of Disney's female-led movies start to tank (for reasons entirely unrelated to main character's gender), things will quietly go back to male leads and straight romance. I will be happy if time proves me wrong.
Isn't it nice to have your cake and eat it too?
I also suspect that the moment a few of Disney's female-led movies start to tank (for reasons entirely unrelated to main character's gender), things will quietly go back to male leads and straight romance. I will be happy if time proves me wrong.
I thought maybe at first but just forgot and enjoyed the movie. Then my wife, while we watched about 2/3 into it said "those two are so hot for each other and they don't even know it" when it came to Raya and Namaari. Then I was pretty much in agreement.
I just finished the movie and from the first moment Raya and Namaari interact they're absolutely written and acted like they're into each other.
This feels a lot like another "We wrote this movie to have a gay lead and execs chickened out at the last moment" situation.
This feels a lot like another "We wrote this movie to have a gay lead and execs chickened out at the last moment" situation.
Once it becomes profitable to them, they'll change their (completely artificial and profit driven) tune.
Might be a while yet with places like Chinese box office but eventually it'll happen. Even over in the US I imagine it will begin to swing in that direction sooner than later.
What? It just seemed like two kids were about to become friends
So more like Disney: lol no, maybe we let you kiss for American audiences in a decade
Lol basically...then maybe an edited scene for foreign release, I can see it now.
For anyone interested in the subject of Disney and its relationship with LGBTQ+ themes on their films, I highly recommend the video essay below. James Somerton in general has one of the best channels on Youtube about queer representation in media.