So Hollywood is at it again. Almost immediately after a "gay moment" in Disney's live-action remake Beauty and the Beast comes a gay character in Power Rangers.
That movie reboot has what's been called the "first queer big-screen superhero" in Yellow Ranger Trini, played by actress-singer Becky G, who is revealed to be having "girlfriend problems" and questioning her sexual orientation. As director Dean Israelite has told The Hollywood Reporter: "The movie is saying 'that's OK' and all of the kids have to own who they are and find their tribe."
So why are we seeing these gay characters emerging in Hollywood movies, particularly two aimed at young viewers that both open this week in Australia? Is Hollywood forcing its liberal agenda onto the rest of the world, promoting homosexuality to unsuspecting children, as conservative politicians have suggested?
Strangely enough, it's the opposite.
Twelve years after the groundbreaking gay romance featuring Heath Ledger and Jake Gyllenhaal in Brokeback Mountain, followed by Sean Penn as a gay politician in Milk (2008) and Natalie Portman and Mila Kunis as lovers in Black Swan (2010), Hollywood studios remain surprisingly coy about gay representation in big mainstream movies compared to the makers of virtually every other form of entertainment.
Following on from Buffy The Vampire Slayer, Xena: Warrior Princess and Will and Grace on TV, Modern Family has been playing successfully to family audiences for eight seasons with gay characters. And in Australia, of course, they have featured on television since Number 96 in the 1970s including such shows appealling to young viewers as Neighbours and Home & Away.
But look at how sensitive Hollywood remains. Last year, there was a subtle reveal in Star Trek Beyond that John Cho's Sulu had a husband but the filmmakers reportedly cut a brief kiss. And director Paul Feig was reticent to confirm the obvious sexuality of Kate McKinnon's lusty Holtzmann in Ghostbusters, citing "the studios and that kind of thing".
Because the studios are first and last about making money, they are loathe to include anything that might alienate segments of the audience. So kudos to Disney and Lionsgate for cracking open the fairytale and superhero worlds respectively.
But their executives would have calculated there is really no downside to briefly including gay issues. On one hand, they are responding to pressure for more diversity in movies. On the other, they benefit from any controversy because more potential ticket-buyers are aware of their movie.
Given it's just a three-second scene in Beauty and the Beast, it was easy for Josh Gad, who plays LeFou, to downplay the controversy as "overblown" when he launched the movie in Australia. Result: it opened with a rousing $US350 million around the world, including $US170 million in North America, last weekend.
And before the headlines about a "lesbian superhero", who even knew Power Rangers was coming out, so to speak? Again: win-win. Having teenage characters dealing with their sexual orientation, bullying and alienation makes the movie more relatable for young viewers. And if controversy results, again it's easy for the filmmakers to play it down.
The danger, of course, is if audiences are either turned off the movie or stopped from seeing it. While Russia has given Beauty and the Beast a rating that restricts anyone under 16 watching it in cinemas, that impact is small change compared with the extra ticket sales around the world.
The American independent sector, which makes lower-budget movies outside the studio system, is where more challenging stories of all kinds can be told. While there is nothing commercial about gay coming-of-age drama Moonlight, it's taken a handy $35 million in North America plus $2 million in this country on the back of winning best picture at the Oscars. Another win-win.
Twitter @gmaddox
