In keeping with the theme of turning beloved childhood characters gay, the new “Power Rangers” film will feature a queer Ranger.
“Power Rangers” director Dean Israelite told the Hollywood Reporter the Yellow Ranger, Trini, has a “pivotal” moment in which she questions her sexuality.
The Hollywood Reporter describes the scene as one in which Trini is “coming to terms with her sexual orientation.” In the scene, one of the other characters claims she is having “boyfriend problems,” but then suggests the problems could actually be “girlfriend problems.”
Israelite says the Yellow Ranger is “questioning a lot about who she is.”
“She hasn't fully figured it out yet,” Israelite explains. “I think what's great about that scene and what that scene propels for the rest of the movie is, 'That's OK.' The movie is saying, 'That's OK,' and all of the kids have to own who they are and find their tribe."
GLAAD president and CEO Sarah Kate Ellis approved of the inclusion in the movie, telling Glamour, “LGBTQ youth deserve a happily ever after just like everyone else.”
“LGBTQ images in films can be a lifeline for young people living in cities and countries where LGBTQ acceptance is not the norm. The film industry lags behind television when it comes to LGBTQ stories, so while these may seem like small moments, they are actually big steps,” Ellis continued.
The inclusion of a queer character in the “Power Rangers” film comes a few weeks after the release of the new “Beauty and the Beast” movie which features an “exclusively queer moment.”
It is unclear whether the “queer moment” featured in the “Power Rangers” film will be criticized for not being gay enough, like the “gay moment” in the “Beauty and the Beast.”
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