Author: Gayety Staff

Rebel Wilson Opens Up About Being Forced to Come Out

When Rebel Wilson went public about her relationship with Ramona Agruma last June, the response was joyful. Unfortunately, the news was—at least in part—overshadowed. Following Wilson’s announcement, Sydney Morning Herald columnist Andrew Hornery penned a piece where he bitterly explained that her coming out got ahead of him breaking the news. In a shockingly entitled move, Hornery complained that Wilson only went public because he had threatened to out her himself. According to Hornery, it was out of “respect” that he gave Wilson two days to comment. If Wilson failed to comment, Hornery would likely have had no issue outing her himself. Hornery didn’t have to tell on himself like this but, bizarrely, he felt slighted that Wilson told her own story.

Related | Rebel Wilson Has a Girlfriend

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Rebel Wilson Opens Up

Wilson made no mention of these threats in her coming out post. A move that Hornery should have been grateful for, but he simply had to insert himself into the conversation. Wilson opened up about this when the Sydney Morning Herald piece started making the rounds. She responded to one user on Twitter, calling the ordeal a very hard situation and that she tried to “handle it with grace.” This was the most we heard from her about the situation, until now.

Thanks for your comments, it was a very hard situation but trying to handle it with grace ????

— Rebel Wilson (@RebelWilson) June 12, 2022

In a recent interview with The Australian, the 42-year-old actress spoke candidly about her experience. “I just thought it was kind of grubby behavior,” she told reporter Ellie Dudley. “Basically, with the situation where a journalist is threatening to out you, you’ve got to hurry, and some people we didn’t get a chance to tell before it came out publicly. And that’s not ideal.” Wilson went on to explain that she and Agruma were not yet out to everyone in their personal lives, and this threat forced their hand. The fallout was particularly hard on Agruma who has less experience in the public eye. Wilson explained that she’s just “not used to having to deal with stuff like that.”

Friendly Fire

Perhaps the most disappointing aspect of this story is that openly gay men at the Sydney Morning Herald were involved. Folks that should know better. Coming out is an intensely personal process and no one should be forced or blackmailed into doing it when they’re not ready. “There are levels to telling people,” Wilson continued. “You tell your close family and your friends and not everybody.”

As most LGBTQ+ folks come to understand, coming out isn’t usually a one-time occurrence. It’s something that happens over time and will continue to happen in small ways for your whole life. “Across our two families, not everybody is as accepting as what you’d hope for,” Wilson explained. “We were trying to be respectful to those people and tell them in our own way.”

Of course, Wilson shouldn’t have to explain herself in this way. Her reasons for not going public with the relationship yet are between her and her partner. Coming out is incredibly important. Our community depends on folks coming out so that we can advocate for the rights and resources we need. We depend on out folks to show young and closeted LGBTQ+ folks that queer joy is possible. That being said, it is crucial that LGBTQ+ folks have agency over this moment. They must be allowed the time for them to prepare for the potential fallout that can follow coming out.

Rebel Wilson and Ramona Agruma

Ever since Wilson shared her Disney Princess with the world, fans have been celebrating their relationship with glee. Now, rumors of a potential engagement are flying after Wilson was spotted wearing a diamond ring to various events. We’ll leave it up to the couple to make that announcement themself. Andrew Hornery has since apologized for his actions saying he has learned some “new and difficult lessons from this.”

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October 14, 2022
Pro Soccer Player Appears to Come Out: Says He Was Hacked

Iker Casillas, one of Spain’s top soccer players, appeared to come out on Twitter recently. “I hope you respect me: I’m gay,” said the tweet, from an account belonging to the former Real Madrid and Spain goalkeeper. Unfortunately, this is not a heartwarming story celebrating more visibility within a mostly-straight sport. It didn’t take long before the tweet was removed from Casillas’ account, which he claimed was hacked. “Hacked account. Luckily everything in order,” wrote the 41-year-old player. “Apologies to all my followers. Of course, more apologies to the LGBT community.”

Related | 45 of the Gayest Moments in Sports History

Whether it was a hacker attempting to defame Casillas, or Casillas himself playing a prank, is unclear. Either way, the tweet was motivated by homophobia. That much is clear. Before the tweet was removed, fellow Spanish athlete Carles Puyol responded to the fake coming-out. “It’s time to tell our story,” he wrote, adding a heart and a kiss emoji. If you’re not in the LGBTQ+ community, you might read this as light-hearted fun. If you are queer, you will recognize this joke as homophobia. One where being gay and intimacy between men is the punchline. One where coming out is an afterthought. A joke.

We Are Not A Punchline

Coming out isn’t a joke. It’s a painstaking process, often brought on by years of anguish. For some of us—especially those living in progressive countries and accepting communities with loving families—it’s not all despair and suffering. Still, it is an incredibly important moment of self-determination. It’s also the beginning of many similar moments. Coming out in school, at work, at church, on uber rides, at your local grocery store, or in your senior living community. Perhaps we can laugh about coming out in some distant future when the practice is rendered obsolete. But that is not a reality for the vast majority of LGBTQ+ folks. For now, coming out is no laughing matter. Particularly not for straight folks.

Despite this reality, many straight people still fail to understand the gravity of these moments. At least not until they have been educated on the matter. After facing a wave of criticism, Puyol took to Twitter to apologize for what he called a clumsy joke. “I have made a mistake,” said the 44-year-old. “Sorry for a clumsy joke with no bad intentions and totally out of place. All my respect and support for the LGTBIQA+ community.” Whatever Puyol’s intentions, the impact of this kind of behavior is very real for LGBTQ+ folks. “Jokes” like these serve as a reminder that most straight men are functionally illiterate when it comes to queerness.

Beyond Disrespectful

Luckily there were others within the sport who quickly spoke out about it including Jose Enrique, another Spanish soccer player. Enrique says he doesn’t buy that the hacking story is legitimate. “Apologize and recognize the mistake rather [than] lie to everyone,” he wrote.

Instead of apologize and recognize the mistake rather lie to everyone pic.twitter.com/QBRvvhicm3

— José enrique (@Jesanchez3) October 9, 2022

Out soccer player Josh Cavallo also spoke out against the exchange. “Joking and making fun out of coming out in football is disappointing,” wrote Cavallo, who came out last year. “To see my role models and legends of the game make fun out of coming out and my community is beyond disrespectful.”

@IkerCasillas and @Carles5puyol joking and making fun out of coming out in football is disappointing. It’s a difficult journey that any LGBTQ+ ppl have to go through. To see my role models and legends of the game make fun out of coming out and my community is beyond disrespectful pic.twitter.com/Yp88aQyyTV

— Josh Cavallo (@JoshuaCavallo) October 9, 2022

Others to weigh in on the controversy include the Spanish Higher Sports Council and Scotland player Zander Murray, who came out in September. We hope that the response to this is an indication of further change for the sport.

Mucho por hacer, por avanzar, por educar y por sensibilizar. Seguiremos.#FelizDomingo???? pic.twitter.com/aHiLzyOhLe

— CSD (@deportegob) October 9, 2022

⚽️ ????️‍???? ???? #bekind pic.twitter.com/1uuS7qK0Fr

— Zander Murray (@ZanderMurray) October 9, 2022

October 10, 2022
When This Overwatch Character Came Out Players Rejected Him

A recent report published in Scientific American is shedding light on the kind of homophobia many straight gamers participate in. This specific report focused mainly on those who play Overwatch. Though almost every gaymer has seen their fair share of overt homophobia in online gaming, this report also goes deeper. What decisions are straight gamers making that tacitly uphold homophobia, and what does it mean for the future of gaming?

Related | The Long History of LGBT Video Game Characters

Blizzard Entertainment

Bursting The Bubble

The problem with being chronically online—something many of you may relate to—is that it can lead to bubbles. Unless you’re actively making moves to consume content outside of your comfort zone, you’re likely in an online bubble right now. That’s how these algorithms work. It’s not always a bad thing either. Safe, queer online spaces are crucial for queer online wellness. The side effect of this is queer people can begin to lose sight of the forest for the trees. We start to believe that the world we live in is inherently more tolerant than it is. But these “worlds” are artificially created for us, and to some extent by us.

The truth is the world is still rampant with homophobia. Over the past century, LGBTQ+ folks have undeniably experienced one of the most remarkable social shifts in both scale and speed. Though the effects of this upward momentum, particularly in Europe, North America, and South America are very real, looks can be deceiving. What is happening behind closed doors? What conversations are happening when queer people aren’t around, or in spaces where queer people hold very little power and influence?

The Truth Comes Out

Any queer person can tell you that homophobia is still alive and well, and transphobia has much of the west in a choke-hold. You don’t have to take our word on it either. A recent report published in Scientific American pulled back the curtain on homophobia in gaming. The report shows that when a character in a video game comes out as gay, fewer people play as that character. The character the report focuses on is the Overwatch damage character, Soldier: 76.

Blizzard Entertainment

Overwatch, or more recently Overwatch 2, is a team-based multiplayer first-person shooter. Also called a “hero shooter,” the game divides every character into roles based on their unique abilities. Players select their hero and battle it out to complete map-specific objectives. Since its inception, the game has had a notable LGBTQ+ audience. This may, in part, have led to Soldier: 76 coming out in 2019. Blizzard, the game’s developers, opted to tell the story of Overwatch in pieces over the lifespan of the game. When it was revealed that Soldier: 76 was gay through a short story called Bastet, he had already carved out quite a large space as a preferred character. That would soon change.

Not On My Overwatch

As the news about Soldier: 76 spread, the frequency with which players chose to play him dropped dramatically. Though most users claimed they didn’t see the character differently after he came out, there’s more to the story. Some players also said they stopped playing Soldier: 76 because of harassment. They explained that when they played as him they were now being targeted with homophobic slurs and harassment. It’s important to mention that storylines like the one in Bastet have no impact on the game whatsoever.

Blizzard Entertainment

The report went even further, with some players explaining that they were more comfortable playing as Tracer than Soldier: 76. Blizzard confirmed that Tracer was a lesbian in the holiday comic Tracer: Reflections. Participants said they felt that “other players see lesbians as appealing and interesting, but that the same players voice disgust toward gay men.”

Related | The Long History of LGBT Video Game Characters

There is a lot of homophobia at play here. The outright harassment and slurs coming from bigoted players. The fear of being associated with queerness, and the ability for straight players to simply opt out of harassment. There is also the inherent misogyny and toxic masculinity at play when we compare attitudes toward Tracer and Soldier:76.

Overwatch Soldiers On

Despite all of this, we hope Blizzard continues to include queer characters in its games. Part of welcoming queerness into your art means accepting that not everyone is going to like it. It means understanding that with queer characters comes the responsibility to treat their storylines with care and respect. It means playing the long game and supporting those who need it until you reach your objective.

Blizzard Entertainment

October 6, 2022
‘Mean Girls’ Star Jonathan Bennett Filmed His Mammogram

On Wednesday, Jonathan Bennett wore pink. In honor of Breast Cancer Awareness Month, the Mean Girls star wore pink to a preventive mammogram screening. Just two days after October 3rd, Bennett documented his mammogram at Shin Imaging Center in Los Angeles. “October is Breast Cancer Awareness Month so I’m showing you what it’s like to get a mammogram,” said the 41-year-old.

Who is Jonathan Bennett?

For those uninitiated, number one, are you sure you’re gay? Seriously though, Bennett is best known for his portrayal of Aaron Samuels in the 2004 classic, Mean Girls. Aaron caught the eye of Cady Heron, played by Lindsay Lohan, very early on in the movie and from there he entered our hearts. It’s something of a running joke that all the male actors in Mean Girls eventually came out as gay. Well, Bennett is no exception. Celebrity Page host Jaymes Vaughan proposed to Bennett in 2020, and the couple became the first gay couple on the cover of The Knot.

Related | 25 Photos of Jonathan Bennett and Jaymes Vaughan’s Dream Wedding

This makes Bennett one of three currently out men who are known for their role in Mean Girls. Among them is Rajiv Surendra who played the captain of The Mathletes, Kevin Gnapoor. We also can’t forget Daniel Franzese who played our “too gay to function” bestie Damian. Bennett and Franzese, who have since revealed they came out to each other on the set of Mean Girls, are still friends today. They snapped a photo together as they reunited the night before Mean Girls’ Day.

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A post shared by Jonathan Bennett (@jonathandbennett)

Get Your Mammogram

Now that you’re all caught up, you can see why we are highly invested in Bennett’s story. The actor was inspired to document his screening after his husband had a scare a few years ago. “With cancer running in both of our families, screenings are important to us,” Bennett wrote on Instagram. The out actor donned a pair of shorts and a bright pink polo as he stepped up to the machine. After he was instructed to remove his shirt, we watch as the machine captures images of his pecs from various angles.

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Cupcakes For A Cause

And that was it! Videos like this are so helpful for breaking stereotypes and misconceptions about screenings in general. The clip, which was created with the support of Wicked Good Cupcakes, is a fine example of how male mammograms go down. Wicked Good Cupcakes are helping Bennett raise money for Ellie Fund, which provides essential services for breast cancer patients. For every limited-edition Vanilla Sprinkle cupcake jar sold this month, Wicked Good Cupcakes will donate $1 to the Ellie Fund. We hope that more people are encouraged to get their screening as a result of this and treat themselves to a cupcake to celebrate.

October 6, 2022
10 Celebs Fan-Cast in Live-Action ‘Legend of Zelda’

The full cast of Netflix’s live-action Legend of Zelda series, featuring Tom Holland, Emma Watson, and Meryl Streep just dropped! Not quite. We’ve been duped again and we’re not even mad about it. Dan Leveille, Director of Product Marketing at Deviant Art and the developer of Equaldex is at it again. Leveille recently used A.I. to generate concept images of Tom Holland as Link in an original Legend of Zelda series by Netflix. The internet had a lot to say about this, especially considering how convincing some of the images were. Leveille followed up on the popularity of the initial post by creating an A.I-generated script in which Link reveals that he’s gay to Ganondorf. We’ve compiled everything here for your convenience, including an inside scoop from Leveille himself.

Related | 8 Images of Tom Holland as Link From Legend of Zelda

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Meet The All-Star Legend of Zelda Cast

Leveille was just warming up. In fact, he just created his pièce de résistance. Using a combination of Midjourney, inpainting with DALL-E 2, some facial correction using Tencent ARC, and a bunch of Photoshop, man and machine came to create something incredible. Leveille took to Instagram to share 10 concept images for the imagined series featuring an all-star cast. The 10 near-perfect images include Tom Holland as Link, Emma Watson as Zelda, and Idris Elba as Ganon. Also featured is Maisie Williams as Saria, Jameela Jamil as Urbosa, Sadie Sink as Malon, and Meryl Streep as Twinrova. Choosing Gemma Chan as The Great Fairy, Steve Buscemi as Dampé, and Danny DeVito as Tingle was genius.

Instagram @danlev

@danlev on Instagram

Instagram @danlev

@danlev on Instagram

Instagram @danlev

@danlev on Instagram

Instagram @danlev

@danlev on Instagram

Instagram @danlev

@danlev on Instagram

Meet Their Creator

Gayety took this opportunity to ask Leveille some questions about his creation and what it means for the future of art and entertainment.

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A post shared by Dan Leveille (@danlev)

Gayety: What was your reaction when your concepts started to blow up?

Leveille: I was shocked—it was super exciting to see some major publications pick it up. It also got a lot of hate. I didn’t think much of generating Link as Tom Holland, but the internet was very opinionated: Some people don’t want a live-action Zelda film — they think it would ruin the series. Others think Tom Holland has become too mainstream. And of course, I got a handful of homophobic responses when I generated the gay Zelda script. I was also kicking myself for not making them better. People commented on how Link’s hair is not blonde, how his eyes are off, and how he wasn’t wearing his signature green hat. So I put more effort into it this time and fixed all of those things.

Q: When did you first start using AI to create art? Will AI one day replace creative artists?

A: I started using AI to create art as I got access to Dall-E in July, and I just got hooked. It’s been so fun and so gratifying how you can make such gorgeous and realistic images in just seconds. I don’t think AI could ever fully replace artists. In some ways, it’s making artists even more powerful by letting them quickly concept ideas, make film storyboards, generate textures and backgrounds, and correct parts of photos. I know a lot of artists are already starting to adapt and use AI as part of their workflow. AI art is also making art more accessible to people who want to be creative but don’t have the skillset. For example, I’ve heard of some great examples of writers using AI art to help illustrate their stories.

Q: What do you think the likelihood is of Netflix making this film? Has Netflix commented on your posts?

A: If they can do it right, I hope they do! They were originally working on a Zelda series back in 2015 but it was allegedly canceled due to leaks. I haven’t heard anything about Netflix seeing my posts, but I doubt they would publicly comment on it. With the attention it’s gotten, I’m really hoping Tom Holland has seen it. He’s apparently taking a break from social media right now, so his social media has been silent for the past few months.

Q: What can we expect from you next?

A: I’ll definitely continue doing nerdy AI art. With Nintendo’s upcoming Mario film, I was considering some more Mario content. I want to play around with GPT-3 some more too, generating more scripts or text-based content that I can tie into the AI art. After getting some homophobic responses to the gay Link AI script, I feel like I should do more of it.

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Perhaps the cast of Legend of Zelda won’t be Dan Leveille’s magnum opus after all. We’ll be refreshing our feeds constantly to see what comes next for the talented 34-year-old. We suggest you follow him and do the same.

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This Is What Happens When Bi Men Try Grindr For The First Time

Dating is hard for bi men. Navigating a complex web of biphobia, homophobia, gender stereotypes, and societal pressure takes a toll on your love life. In a recent video from Grindr, we got to hear from bi men directly. Four bisexual guys took the opportunity to try the dating app for the first time, which started a bunch of interesting conversations.

It Ain’t Easy Being Bi

In case you didn’t know, bisexual folks make up more than half of the LGBTQ+ population. No shade if you didn’t by the way. Biphobia and bi-erasure have done a lot to ensure that bi folks are much less visible in our community. This is true for all bi+ folks, regardless of gender, but bi men are also subject to plain old homophobia. Surveys have shown that men are considered less attractive to women when they find out they’re bi. One survey found that 63% of women said they wouldn’t date a man who has sex with men. Even if it only happened once. This is true even though 47% of the same women said they have been attracted to another woman. 31% even had a sexual experience with another woman.

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As a result, many bi men have to resort to hiding their identity, dating other bi folks exclusively, or dating men. One 2019 study, published in the Journal of Bisexuality, found that gay men are less likely to hold any attraction prejudices against bi men. Generally, straight women perceived bi men as more feminine, but the same couldn’t be said for gay men. While the lead author of the study has cautioned that further research is needed to confirm this, there is plenty of anecdotal evidence to back this up. Just ask bi men.

Bi Men Try Grindr

The clip featured four bi men; Anton Sebel, Dio Reynoso, Joshua Montoya, and Nick Masc. They were certainly familiar with the app but had yet to take the plunge. This gives us the rare opportunity to experience that moment through bi eyes. Each of the guys set up their profiles, selecting their photos, pronouns, filters, and “tribes.” They also chose whether or not they accept NSFW pics. Each guy varied in their responses, so it felt like an even spread of experiences.

As the guys sat back and watched the responses (most of which were photos) roll in, they talked about their love lives. This included topics like non-monogamy and whether they consider themselves tops, bottoms, or versatile. Despite having very different ways of being bi, all of the guys seemed to agree that it’s harder to date straight women. “With girls, it’s much harder than with guys,” said Montoya. “A lot of times I feel like girls have an insecurity if you’re not straight.” Sebel chimed in to agree, saying “It’s way easier with bisexual girls but it straight girls it never works.”

In the end, it seemed like the guys had a great time on Grindr. If only bi men had as much luck dating straight women.

September 30, 2022