Entertainment

He Just Came Out Of The Closet

by Mallory Schlossberg

So, here's something you don't hear about everyday: an animated film character just came out of the closet. Yup —Gobber from How To Train Your Dragon 2 is gay, and he's going to actually come out in the movie. You might think that any references that the viking makes to not getting married would have nothing to do with sexuality, but indeed, it does.

Here's how it all goes down: in the movie, Gobber, who's voiced by Craig Ferguson, witnesses a husband and wife duo in a fight, and he admits that that's why he never got married...but then he says there's another reason. Think that's still not enough evidence? Director Dean DeBlois confirmed it! He said:

When we were recording Craig Ferguson, I had written the line, "This is why I never got married," and he, as he often does, added it as an ad lib and he said, 'Yup, Gobber is coming out of the closet [...] I think that's a really fun [and] daring move to put in. I love the idea that Gobber is Berk's resident gay.

You can't deny that that's pretty cool — a mainstream animated film is featuring an LGBT character without it having any consequence. That's pretty progressive, and it also sends a message. It's definitely daring, and it opens doors up for other animated movies.

It's also part of a groundbreaking series of events, too; not many movies have done this before. In fact, ParaNorman was noted as one of the first PG-rated animated movies to feature an LGBT character. Further, it was awarded by the GLAAD Media Awards, and it was the first ever PG-rated nominee.

But what's especially interesting about Gobber is that it seems as though his homosexuality will not be what entirely comprises his character — it's just a facet of it. We can find out more about Gobber and everyone else in the sequel to the super popular original movie when it hits theaters this June.

Image: Dreamworks