If you don’t understand why Love, Simon is a big deal then you probably aren’t gay and don’t know anyone who is. Let’s get you out of that rock you’re hiding under, shall we? To start, I’ll say that this film is more than just another “LGBTQ+ movie”, it is an iconic piece of filmography that perfectly depicts the struggles, complications and emotions of coming out as a gay teen even in today’s relatively accepting culture.
Love, Simon is the first movie produced by a major movie studio starring a gay lead, and that is, as our homophobic president would say, is gigantic. Huge.
Until now movie studios have been scared shitless by the idea of having a non-straight lead character because of the backlash they would face by the general homophobic, mostly cis-gendered audiences they make all their money from. However, with the success Love, Simon has had all over the country it’s clear that, in today’s world at least, they couldn’t be more in the wrong.
My favorite thing about this film is that it’s not a “gay movie,” like we have come to know all other LGBTQ+ films. It’s another teenage rom-com about a guy in high school but he happens to be gay and closeted. Love, Simon is the tip of the iceberg when it comes to normalizing gay culture and getting people to understand that you don’t have to be gay to enjoy a film with a gay lead. I’m not straight and I still enjoy films with straight leads… see how that works?
If you’ve read anything I’ve written about LGBTQ representation, like that in This is Us or the lack of it in Cursed Child, you’ll know that I’m all about normalizing homosexuality and all spectrums of queerness until society stops compartmentalizing us into different boxes than our cis-gendered, straight counterparts. We are human beings who just live our lives differently than you. We still laugh, cry and love the same way and I cannot wait until sexuality and gender identity becomes a non-issue.
Love, Simon is helping us get there.
You know how Black Panther hit home with African-Americans all over the country, and how children and adults everywhere felt a sense of empowerment by seeing a movie filled with black actors and African culture? This is like that, but gay.
It’s also extremely different, because this movie isn’t only about empowering a race or community. It’s empowering us, yes, but it is also educating our allies, starting conversations, inspiring youth and teaching them that it is 100% okay being who you are — something I and my peers never got growing up.
After I watched Love, Simon I immediately called my parents to tell them about it and asked them to go see it so they could get better insight into my life growing up. Both of them grew up in conservative Islamic families so I knew this movie would show and explain things about gay culture they would never have learned about otherwise. When they did my mother called and asked if I struggled the same way when I came out. Save for the blackmailing and attempt at fake matchmaking, I absolutely did.
We had a conversation about a subject we rarely talk about and this film opened up a line of dialogue that I know thousands of other Americans are having after seeing it. And just like the friends in my feed, watching the scenes when he came out brought me to tears multiple times. Not just because it was emotional and beautiful, but because it hit home in a way no other major studio movie has ever done, or even attempted to do.
The gays that grew up in yesteryear? Most of us had none of that.
We didn’t have TV shows, movies and books about other gay teens. Or if we did, we had to hide them as far away from our families and friends because they were overtly flamboyant stereotypically feminine or just plain way too gay. I’m not saying that flamboyant and feminine are bad (hello, have you ever seen Drag Race?), but when you’re trying to stay in the closet you’re trying to be as restrained as possible and not in any way different from the other boys in school. You’re analyzing every single action you do so that the people in your life don’t call you out for being different. Did you hug that guy you like for too long? Did anyone catch you eyeing him? Did you put away your Britney Spears cassette somewhere they couldn’t find it? Did you exit out of that gay AOL chat room you spent hours in because you didn’t have any gay friends at home?
We did these things because we were afraid of the catastrophic fall-out that could happen if we didn’t. You could get yelled at, slapped, beat, disowned, kicked out. Killed.
So to see Simon being so lovingly accepted for who he was, it was almost like a punch in the gut. He was living the life I, and so many other gays, wanted. When all he got was love and acceptance from his family the moment he came out, I was instantly reminded about the moment I came out and how opposite of an experience it was from his.
I cried because Simon got the coming-out story that every single gay kid in the world wants, but also because I knew that this movie was going to help at least some of those kids get that moment. While this movie reminded the older gays of ourselves and the chances we never got, it’s inspiring today’s youth and telling them that being gay is the new normal.
As much as you may want to deny it, entertainment and Hollywood molds a lot of our culture and how we see the world. Love, Simon is more than just a movie, it is a symbol of acceptance and love, and the start of a new era where coming out isn’t going to be such a big deal anymore.
If you or anyone you know is struggling with coming out or trying to figure out your own queer path in life, I implore you to visit and contact The Trevor Project, a resource that is here to help guide you through this. If you’re reading this and you’re in the closet and don’t have anyone around you to go to, please know that you are not alone, and you will survive.
Love, Simon is in theaters now
WRITTEN BY TARIQ KYLE
Tariq Kyle is a 27 year old writer currently living in Seattle, Washington. He is a short, ridiculous gay guy in love with all things Outlander, Charmed and men in general.
