Bohemian Rhapsody trailer sparks controversy for 'ignoring' Freddie Mercury's sexuality

Producer Bryan Fuller accuses 20th Century Fox of actively avoiding mention of the AIDS crisis

The trailer for new Queen film Bohemian Rhapsody has come under fire for ignoring Freddie Mercury's sexuality.

In two short minutes, Mr Robot star Rami Malek impressed in his role as the legendary frontman, however, some viewers weren't impressed calling out 20th Century Fox of “heterosexual-washing” his story in both the trailer and plot synopsis.

One such person is producer Bryan Fuller (American Gods) who expressed his anger on Twitter.

“Anyone else mildly annoyed that the Bohemian Rhapsody trailer features gay/bi superstar Freddie Mercury flirting with and twirling with a woman but no indication of his love of men?” he wrote.

Fuller argues that the trailer favours Mercury's relationship with women as opposed to his ones with men while also highlighting the absence of the singer's AIDS diagnosis from the synopsis. Instead, it's simply referred to as “a life-threatening illness.”

“Dear 20th Century Fox: Yes, it was a life-threatening illness, but more specifically it was AIDS," he wrote. “From having gay sex with men. Do better.”

Many Twitter users agreed with Fuller's criticism.

The film is said to chart “the meteoric rise of the band through their iconic songs and revolutionary sound, their near-implosion as Mercury’s lifestyle spirals out of control and their triumphant reunion on the eve of Live Aid.”

Dexter Fletcher took over from Bryan Singer as director of the project. It co-stars Lucy Boynton, Aiden Gillen and Mike Myers in an unspecified role.

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