At the time of release, Beauty and the Beast received a lot of attention for reports that LeFou would be the first gay character in a Disney film.
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In an interview with the Independent, Josh reflected on the substance and impact of LeFou's story arc, and what more could've been done.
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“We didn’t go far enough to warrant accolades,” he said regarding LeFou's sexuality.
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“We didn’t go far enough to say, ‘Look how brave we are.’ My regret in what happened is that it became ‘Disney’s first explicitly gay moment’ and it was never intended to be that."
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"It was never intended to be a moment that we should laud ourselves for, because frankly, I don’t think we did justice to what a real gay character in a Disney film should be."
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Josh also said that if anyone involved with the film wants to "pat ourselves on the back" for LeFou, then, "Damn it we should have gone further with that."
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“Everybody deserves an opportunity to see themselves on screen, and I don’t think we’ve done enough — and I certainly haven’t done enough to do that.”
