The 10 Queerest Disney Movies

    The gays love Disney, and with good reason — Disney's animated films are rife with LGBT subtext, imagery, and themes.

    Louis Peitzman
    by Louis Peitzman

    BuzzFeed News Reporter

    10. Hercules (1997)

    Disney

    There's something rather gay about Disney's Hercules — and that's ignoring the fact that his classic mythological counterpart had numerous relations with men. There's also the god Hades, camped up in the fashion of so many Disney villains. He sure does seem fixated on that oiled-up muscle hunk.

    9. Snow White and the Seven Dwarfs (1937)

    Disney

    Seven men living together in the forest? And look how irritated they are when a woman has the gall to show up and disrupt their way of life. Snow White's a total cockblock.

    8. Pinocchio (1940)

    Disney

    No girls allowed on Pleasure Island! Well OK, then.

    7. Peter Pan (1953)

    Disney

    Peter Pan is probably just asexual: that would explain his revulsion when Wendy tries to kiss him. But the whole living with a bunch of Lost Boys on a distant island is pretty queer. And let's not forget that his best friend is a fairy named Tinkerbell.

    6. Lilo & Stitch (2002)

    Disney

    Can aliens be queer? Sure they can. And it doesn't get much queerer than Pleakley and Jumba, whose relationship got even more obvious as the Disney film spawned sequels and a TV series. Did I mention Pleakley's ambiguous gender identity?

    5. Aladdin (1992)

    Disney

    Aladdin himself seems regrettably heterosexual, but Jafar is another one of Disney's ambiguously gay villains. And then of course there's the Genie, who is a far more positive representation of being gay than the evil Grand Vizier. In another lifetime, it's nice to imagine that he and Aladdin made it work.

    4. The Lion King

    Disney

    You might think Timon and Pumbaa are just friends, but you'd be wrong.

    3. Beauty and the Beast (1991)

    Disney

    Timon and Pumbaa, meet Lumière and Cogsworth. But they're not the only subtextual couple in Beauty and the Beast. Gaston's lackey Lefou is clearly in love with him — and really, who wouldn't be?

    2. The Little Mermaid (1989)

    Disney

    Ursula is a drag queen. No, really, she was visually inspired by the great Divine, which would explain the striking similarities. And the plot is filled with classic queer tropes: primarily Ariel's inability to fit in and her forbidden desire. Don't worry, in the end King Triton accept Ariel coming out as a human.

    1. Mulan (1998)

    Disney

    It doesn't get any queerer than Mulan. "Reflection" is an LGBT anthem, depicting a girl who doesn't conform to traditional gender roles. Mulan herself isn't a trans man, but her transition to Ping does feel like a trans narrative. And then there's the fact that Li Shang (voiced by out gay actor B.D. Wong) falls in love with Mulan when he still thinks she's a male soldier. Ready for the kicker? Harvey Fierstein is in this one.