“Jungle Cruise” Disparity & Inclusion Issues
It’s still over half a year out from opening, but Disney’s upcoming live-action film adaptation of the Disneyland ride “Jungle Cruise” has been hit by two very minor controversies in the space of a day.
First up,
The Jasmine Brand reports that questions are being raised over the film’s salary pay outs to its stars Dwayne Johnson and Emily Blunt. Specifically The Rock is getting a sizeable paycheck of $22 million whereas Blunt is only taking home $9 million for her role – despite both sharing leading role duties. As the gender pay disparity continues in Hollywood, this has simply added to it.
Another is the issue of Jack Whitehall’s character. Disney faced criticism with their live-action “Beauty and the Beast” for the inclusion of a gay character but make no real mention of it beyond mere suggestion. Now,
TMZ reports that a test screening of the film took place last week and it looks like the studio is making progress… slowly.
According to one of their sources, Whitehall’s character comes out to Dwayne Johnson’s character… by saying he’s not interested in women at all. That one reference is about it apparently though, and as the film is based on the past it avoids use of the term gay and the report indicates people in the crowd wondered why Disney tip-toed around it.
Disney’s “Jungle Cruise” will open in cinemas on July 24th 2020.