Isaac exclaims `gay, gay, gay…' to decry bill
As Disney's LGBTQ employees and their supporters rallied Tuesday for their company to take a stand against Florida's “Don't Say Gay” bill, actor Oscar Isaac took a moment out of doing press for his upcoming Disney mini-series to decry the “absolutely ridiculous law.”
When a Variety reporter asked the “Dune” star for his opinion of the controversial legislation, which restricts public schools from teaching students about sexual orientation and gender issues, Isaac began, “I guess my comment would be…” Isaac then briefly broke into song: “gay gay gay gay gay gay gay gay gay gay gay gayyyyyy!”
The actor, who stars in the upcoming Marvel Cinematic Universe (MCU) series “Moon Knight,” finished up by saying: “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. It's astounding that it even exists in this country.”
Disney has found itself at the center of a fierce debate over the proposed law because it has roughly 80,000 theme park employees in Florida, the New York Times reported. While the company has a long history of supporting the LGBTQ community, it was reported in February that it had donated tens of thousands of dollars to Republican legislators and state officials who supported the bill, the Independent said.
The reports led Disney CEO Bob Chapek to announce that the company would “pause” all donations in the state.
Disney subsequently was not among the more than 150 companies, including Marriott and American Airlines, that signed a Human Rights Campaign letter opposing the legislation, which opponents have labeled the “Don't Say Gay” bill.
At a rally Tuesday of about 75 people near Disney's studio in Burbank, Rachel Anderson, an employee in the Disney Music Group, told Variety: “Florida is not a safe place right now for the LGBTQIA community.” Anderson said she has a transgender son.
Another employee, who declined to give her name, said she was unconvinced by Disney's claim that it wanted to stay out of political controversies, noting that Chapek has been politically active on opposing mask mandates at theme parks.