Almost every Disney movie previously delayed due to the COVID-19 (coronavirus) pandemic has a new release date, but there are a few movies under 20th Century Studios and Searchlight Pictures labels that don’t. Bob’s Burgers: The Movie has disappeared from Disney’s release schedule a few times, while The French Dispatch has no new release date yet but is expected to premiere at Cannes in July. The most concerning silence, however, is in regards to the musical Everybody’s Talking About Jamie.
Everybody’s Talking About Jamie is an adaptation of the West End stage musical of the same name, which was itself inspired by the documentary Jamie: Drag Queen at 16. It tells the story of Jamie New, a gay 16-year-old who dreams of being a drag sensation. His mom and friends support him as he stands up to bullies and his homophobic father. The show won four WhatsOnStage awards and was nominated for five Olivier Awards.
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The movie, which has the same writer (Tom MacRae) and director (Jonathan Butterell) as the stage show, has been delayed three times in the past year due to the pandemic. Initially scheduled for an October 23, 2020, release, Everybody’s Talking About Jamie was pushed back to January 22, 2021, and then February 26, 2021, before disappearing off of Disney’s release calendar entirely. Before Everybody’s Talking About Jamie removal from the schedule, a trailer was released in October 2020.
Disney has not had the best record when it comes to supporting LGBTQ+-themed material. Nimona, another film focused on LGBTQ+ characters that was greenlit by FOX before the Disney merger, was recently canceled by Disney despite production being 75% complete. Disney did greenlight Love, Victor, a spin-off of the FOX film Love, Simon, for Disney+ but moved it to Hulu allegedly due to concerns about “adult content,” even though the show itself was incredibly tame. Though some of Disney’s TV series have had impressive representation, the company’s theatrical releases have done little beyond tokenism and queerbaiting.
Hopefully, Disney will announce release plans for Everybody’s Talking About Jamie soon. The source material’s successful, and the trailer makes the film look entertaining and uplifting. The film’s diversity (featuring not only featuring a gay gender non-conforming lead but also a hijabi Muslim best friend) is something that should be celebrated. Though it may take lesser priority for Disney than franchise films and effects-heavy blockbusters, Everybody’s Talking About Jamie could be the sort of crowd-pleaser that becomes a sleeper hit.
Everybody’s Talking About Jamie stars Max Harwood, Sarah Lancashire, Lauren Patel, Shobna Gulati, Ralph Ineson, Adeel Akhtar, Samuel Bottomley, Sharon Horgan and Richard E. Grant.
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