Luca director says Disney film nearly featured gay romance between main characters: ‘We talked about it’

Director said he was ‘honoured’ by LGBTQ+ community embracing the children’s film

Luca director Enrico Casarosa has said that he discussed the two main characters having a romantic relationship in the animated adventure.

Released in June, the Disney/Pixar film focuses on the friendship between two young boys, Luca and Alberto, in Italy.

Casarosa has said in previous interviews that the film was based on his platonic friendship with another boy growing up, but many viewers said that they felt there was a romantic connection between Luca and Alberto.

However, speaking to The Wrap, the director said that the creative team had “talked about” a potential romance between the characters featuring in the film.

“I think the reason probably we didn’t talk about it as much and, to a certain degree, we’re slightly surprised by the amount of people talking about romance, is that we were really focusing on friendship and so pre-romance,” he said.

“But it is a kind of love, right? There’s a lot of hugging and it’s physical and my experience as a straight man certainly wasn’t that… some people seem to get mad that I’m not saying yes or no, but I feel like, well, this is a movie about being open to any difference.”

Casarosa explained that when they made Luca, the team were thinking more about how the boys felt like “outsiders” because of race than sexuality.

“It’s not where I was coming from but it’s so wonderful and even more powerful for the LGBTQ+ community who has felt so much of as an outsider, right, where this is so real and stronger than my experience, I’m sure to have to grow up with that kind of a difference,” he said.

“I felt really honoured… I love that that metaphor is reading in all these different ways.”