Sony Pictures Entertainment

SUMMARY

Considering the quality, quantity, and diversity of films distributed under the Sony Pictures Entertainment banner, GLAAD has rated Sony Pictures Entertainment as INSUFFICIENT.

It is disappointing to see both the number and percentage of LGBTQ-inclusive films drop year-over-year for Sony. Though there were noteworthy supporting LGBTQ characters in films such as Fly Me to the Moon, Tarot, and Between the Temples, there were no LGBTQ leads seen across Sony’s slate.

HISTORY

Founded as Cohn-Brant-Cohn (CBC) Film Sales in 1918, the studio was renamed Columbia Pictures in 1924. During the 1920s, Columbia Pictures garnered prestige through its association with director Frank Capra, producing some of the biggest films and stars in classic Hollywood. In the late 1980s, the studio was briefly acquired by Coca-Cola and launched TriStar pictures, which was its own entity until Sony purchased it in 1989. Since 1992, Sony Pictures Classics, Sony Pictures Entertainment’s indie film label, has acquired, produced and distributed independent, documentary and arthouse films. Sony entered into multi-year deals with Netflix and The Walt Disney Company in 2021 to host films on their streaming platforms, including Disney+ and Hulu, following theatrical releases. Also in 2021, Sony acquired anime streaming service Crunchyroll from WarnerMedia and AT&T. Legendary Entertainment then reached a distribution deal with Sony to distribute its future slate of films in 2022, excluding Warner Bros.’ Dune and MonsterVerse films. Currently, Sony Pictures Entertainment distributes films from its many imprints including Columbia Pictures, TriStar Pictures, Sony Pictures Classics, Sony Pictures Animation, Screen Gems, Affirm Films and Crunchyroll.

Sony Pictures Entertainment has an inconsistent history in terms of LGBTQ representation. Columbia’s political thriller Advise and Consent (1962) and TriStar’s neo-noir Basic Instinct (1993) were denounced by LGBTQ groups, including GLAAD, for their poor queer roles. In more recent years, Sony has released LGBTQ-inclusive films such as GLAAD Media Award nominees A Man Called Otto (2022), Shortcomings and Anyone But You (2023), as well as Our Ladies (2021), Whitney Houston: I Wanna Dance with Somebody (2022), and Dumb Money (2023). Sony Pictures Classics has released some high-profile LGBTQ-inclusive films, notably including the documentary The Celluloid Closet (1995), based on GLAAD co-founder Vito Russo’s book of the same name which explores the rich history of LGBTQ representation in cinema. Other inclusive films from Sony Pictures Classics include GLAAD Media Award winners Call Me By Your Name and A Fantastic Woman (2017) and Parallel Mothers (2021); as well as GLAAD Media Award nominees Pain and Glory (2019) and I Carry You With Me (2021).

OF THE 4 LGBTQ-INCLUSIVE FILMS,

2 WERE SONY PICTURES

2 WERE SONY CLASSICS

Considering the quality, quantity, and diversity of films distributed under Sony Pictures Entertainment and its labels, GLAAD has given Sony Pictures Entertainment an INSUFFICIENT grade.

SONY PICTURES

Fly Me to the Moon

Widest Release: 3,356 Theaters

Vito Russo Test: PASS

This comedy follows a fictionalized NASA public relations team in a timeline where the Nixon administration attempts to fake the moon landing. For the staging of the moon landing, they hire Lance Vespertine, an auteur director, who is gay. Verspertine plays a significant role in the film, and is defined by his job more than his sexuality. It is notable that he is out in a film that takes place in the ‘60s and that his story does not lean into the tired self-loathing often seen in period pieces.

Saturday Night

Widest Release: 2,336 Theaters

Vito Russo Test: FAIL

This retelling of the first Saturday Night Live show featured many characters who are real artists that were present for that original taping. There is a brief appearance by out singer Janis Ian, played by out musician Naomi McPherson, for less than a minute as she is performing mostly in the background. Given that there isn’t as much widely held cultural awareness of Ian, and her sexual orientation was not discussed in the film, she was not included in GLAAD’s tally.

Tarot

Widest Release: 3,104 Theaters

Vito Russo Test: PASS

Tarot follows a group of friends who pull a tarot card reading on vacation together with each character then dying in the way their card had depicted. One of the friends in the group is Paige, who booked the trip for her girlfriend Elise’s birthday. Though it is made clear they are dating, the moments of confirmation happen so quickly that many audience members may not pick up on it. Further, Elise is the first person to be killed off and Paige eventually dies as well, even though the straight couple central to the film both survive. Though having a queer couple in this friend group is an accurate representation of queerness in young friend cohorts, the film could have done better to subvert tropes by developing the character’s relationship further and/or ensuring the character’s survival.

SONY PICTURES CLASSICS

Between the Temples

Widest Release: 576 Theaters

Vito Russo Test: PASS

This dramedy follows Ben, a Jewish cantor whose wife passed away, as he moves back home and strikes up a relationship with an older woman seeking a bat mitzvah. Ben has two mothers in this movie, Meira, his biological mother, and Judith, who is Filipino and converted to Judaism when she met Meira. Both mothers, especially Judith, meddle in Ben’s life to try and find him a new girlfriend, but this is clearly done with affection. The casual inclusion of a significant lesbian couple, and especially women who are slightly older, is a welcome step forward.

The Room Next Door

Widest Release: 6 Theaters

Vito Russo Test: FAIL

The Room Next Door follows two friends, Martha and Ingrid, who reconnect after Martha is diagnosed with terminal cancer. There are several small moments of LGBTQ inclusion throughout the film. At one of Ingrid’s book signings, a fan asks Ingrid to make out the signature to her girlfriend. Additionally, in flashbacks of Martha’s life, we see her working with a photographer, Martin, as they travel to Baghdad to report on the Spanish priests there, the Carmelites. Martin tells Martha that he was previously in a relationship with Bernardo, the man they interviewed, and that it’s likely Bernando is now with another Carmelite. Even though these moments are thoughtful and inclusive, they do not significantly impact the plot itself, as the primary focus is on Martha and Ingrid.

OPPORTUNITIES AHEAD

Sony will release Street Fighter in 2026, an adaptation of the popular video game franchise. Eagle, Juri, and Poison are characters that many fans of the game series posit as LGBTQ, something that could be confirmed and expanded on in this film. Sony is also developing Horizon Zero Dawn, another video game adaptation, which has a bisexual main character, Aloy, who has the option to kiss a woman in a DLC (downloadable content add-on) for the game. A sequel to the cult classic film Labyrinth is also in the works. The original film featured David Bowie as the Goblin King and a remake could expand upon the nonconforming styling of the character in the role’s successor. Finally, Sony is adapting The Wedding People from the book of the same name, which has a lesbian ensemble character.

Sony Pictures Classics released On Swift Horses in 2025, which follows married couple Muriel and Lee as they build a life after Lee returns from the Korean War. That life is upended when Lee’s younger brother Julius comes to town. Julius then heads to Las Vegas where he starts a secret relationship with a man, Henry, and Muriel also has a relationship with another woman, Sandra. Sony Pictures Classics will also release Blue Moon, a biopic about lyricist Lorenz Hart who, as part of the Broadway songwriting duo Rodgers & Hart, wrote the lyrics and music to over 26 musicals. Hart has been described by people who knew him as “discreetly homosexual,” though no news was ever published about any of his partners during his lifetime.

Sony has a number of undated films that are LGBTQ-inclusive but for which no news has been reported by the press in recent years. This includes an adaptation of The Hazel Wood, a popular novel that includes queer characters Janet and Althea; The Broken Earth Trilogy, another adaptation of an LGBTQ-inclusive series which includes queer characters Alabaster, Innon, and Tonkee; The Diabolic, an adaptation which follows queer protagonist Nemesis who has a complicated relationship with supporting character Sidonia; Metal Gear Solid, a video game adaptation whose universe includes several queer characters; and a biopic of bisexual singer and actress Halsey. GLAAD hopes to see all these films make their way from development to production.

GLAAD SRI tracked films distributed theatrically under Sony Pictures and Sony Pictures Classics, as well as Sony’s anime-focused subsidiary label Crunchyroll, in the 2024 calendar year.