Pixar’s New Animated Short Follows A Gay Man’s Journey To Acceptance
Disney+ subscribers got a pleasantly inclusive surprise this week with the release of âOut,â a Pixar short film featuring a gay protagonist.Â
âOut,â directed by Steven Clay Hunter, was unveiled Friday as part of the Disney+ SparkShorts series. The animated film follows Greg (voiced by Kyle McDaniel), who is about to move in with his boyfriend, Manuel (Caleb Cabrera).
The only problem? Greg hasnât told his parents that heâs gay.Â
When his mom and dad show up on moving day, Greg magically swaps bodies with his dog and, in doing so, learns a valuable lesson about living authentically. (Catch the trailer for âOutâ above.)Â
âOutâ breaks fresh ground as Pixarâs first project to feature an LGBTQ character in a central role.
It also boasts an all-star creative team. Hunter was an animator on several Pixar hits, including âFinding Nemoâ and âToy Story 4.â Producer Max Sachar worked on âCocoâ and âToy Story 3.âÂ
Response from viewers was largely enthusiastic.
âPixar have delivered on an LGBTQ+ story,â one person tweeted. âIâm HERE for it and Lordy did I cry.â Added another, âI just watched a family love their gay son in a Pixar short. I just watched myself be represented in a Pixar short.âÂ
As of Friday evening, neither Disney nor Pixar had issued public statements about âOut.â It should be noted that the short filmâs release follows varied efforts on behalf of both companies to diversify their programming.Â
Not all of those efforts, however, have been well received.Â
The Disney-Pixar feature âOnward,â released in March, featured a âself-identifiedâ lesbian character, voiced by Lena Waithe. But the result was Officer Specter, a Cyclops cop who appeared in a single scene.Â
In 2017, director Bill Condon promised that the live-action reboot of Disneyâs âBeauty and the Beastâ would feature an âexclusively gay momentâ involving Josh Gadâs LeFou. In the end, that âmomentâ satisfied just about no one.Â
Disney+, meanwhile, has fared considerably better. The streaming service featured âHigh School Musical: The Musical: The Seriesâ as part of its debut lineup last fall. The reboot of 2006âs âHigh School Musicalâ boasts the franchiseâs first openly gay character, Carlos (Frankie A. Rodriguez). One of the showâs later episodes even hinted at a romance for the character.Â
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This article originally appeared on HuffPost.