A theater in Oklahoma has gotten a spotlight shined upon it for posting a sign on its entryway doors. The sign, pictured below courtesy of KFOR's Twitter, warns parents about the latest Pixar movie Lightyear. But this isn’t for flashing lights or scary imagery, but instead is about the brief same sex-kiss.
“Warning! Attention Parents: The management of this theater discovered after booking ‘Lightyear’ that there is a same-sex kissing scene within the first 30 minutes of the Pixar movie. We will do all we can to fast-forward through that scene, but it might not be exact. We apologize for any inconvenience this late discovery of this scene causes.”
According to NBC, Oklahoma resident Patricia Kasbek was the one who snapped the picture. Initially thinking it was a joke, she shared it on social media to get a few laughs. After learning that management was, indeed, serious about the movie, she called the theater to leave a complaint. Her call was sent to voicemail. Kasbek shared her feelings with NBC.
“I told them that it was completely insulting for them to censor a same-gender kiss when they’ve never done this to an opposite-gender kiss. I will never see a movie at this theater while under this ownership.”
Alex Wade, deputy director of Oklahomans for Equality, also voiced his grievances to NBC about the warning sign.
“I am not shocked to see something like this happening in my state, but it does break my heart that young LGBTW+ Oklahomans are made to feel like something is wrong with them. This is why we develop chapters in rural Oklahoma to show everyone that there are people in their corner.”
Wade made further comments that coincided with Kasbek on the unfair treatment between same-sex and opposite-gender affection in film.
“When same-sex couples show affection, even the most chaste of kisses, it is sexualized and treated as if it were explicit. If this were a heterosexual couple, the theater would never even think of skipping it, because heterosexual couples are given the grace to be intimate without being shamed.”
The Restored Kiss
The kiss featured in Lightyear was initially cut from the final movie. But was restored when the company came under fire for their response to the “Don’t Say Gay Bill” in Florida. This spurred Pixar employees to send a letter to CEO Bob Chapek.
“We at Pixar have personally witnessed beautiful stories, full of diverse characters, come back from Disney corporate reviews shaved down to crumbs of what they once were. Even if creating LGBTQIA+ content was the answer to fixing the discriminatory legislation in the world, we are being barred from creating it.”
Since then, Chapek issued an open apology to Disney and Pixar employees, promising to do better. So far, there has been notable steps. Dr. Strange and the Multiverse of Madness featured an America Chavez with two moms and a pride pin, and Lightyear’s kiss was restored for its theatrical run. This led to both films being banned in multiple countries for refusing to censor the characters or scenes. While the representation is a small drop in a bucket, these decisions have been making large waves both across continental borders and within our own communities in America.