Bohemian Rhapsody star Rami Malek promises that the Freddie Mercury biopic will not shy away from addressing the singer’s sexuality, following a recent backlash.
Hannibal creator Bryan Fuller was among the most vocal critics of a trailer released earlier this year because he felt it downplayed Mercury’s sexual relationships with men and his battle with AIDS.
“I feel what the trailer is doing is queer-erasure,” he tweeted. “If they were out and proud with his bi-sexuality they would have indicated he was bi-sexual.
“Showing him romantic with a woman, but not a man (3 frames don’t count) is not a celebration of bi-sexual identity. It’s hiding it.”
Bohemian Rhapsody star Malek — who plays Mercury in the movie — has addressed those complaints in an interview with Attitude, in which he promised the film will indeed meaningfully portray the singer’s bisexuality.
“It’s a shame that people are making remarks after a minute teaser where you just wanna see the music. It’s difficult,” he said.
“First, let me say that I don’t think the film shies away from his sexuality or his all-consuming disease, which is obviously AIDS. I don’t know how you could avoid any of that, or if anyone would ever want to. It’s a bit absurd that anyone’s judging this from a minute trailer.”
Malek also discussed the ways that Bohemian Rhapsody addresses Mercury’s battle with HIV/AIDS in the latter years of his life.
“The film needed to approach it in a delicate manner,” he explained. “You can’t shy away from it. It was an important moment to have in the film, one that ultimately is very sad but also empowering in a way.
“It shows you just how resilient human beings can be and how much we rely on the strength of our friends and family to get us through tough times. This pandemic is still very much a horrific threat to so many people in the world. It exists as a reality for so many that I think it would be a shame not to address it.”
Attitude is available in print and digital now (September 13). Bohemian Rhapsody opens on October 24 in the UK and November 2 in the US.
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