Controversial new play imagines ‘a gay future Prince George coming out’
A new play will reportedly depict a future in which Prince George has come out. (Getty/Karwai Tang)
Jeremy O. Harris, the writer behind the controversial stage show Slave Play, is reportedly developing another provocative play that imagines a fictional version of Prince George “coming out of the closet” in the future.
The play, rumoured to be called Prince F****t, is written by Canadian author Jordan Tannahill, according to Page Six.
It will allegedly portray “a not-very-distant future in which Prince George has just come out of the closet,” the publication reports.
Prince F****t is likely to stoke the flames of controversy for fictionalising the coming out of a very real person in Prince George, who turns 11 in July and is second in line to the British throne. He is the eldest son of Prince William and Catherine, Princess of Wales.
In 2021, animated series The Prince reimagined George as a catty, bratty and status-obsessed eight-year-old boy, who makes life hard for the rest of the Royal Family. He was voiced by Gary Janetti.
The show, which also featured the voices of Alan Cumming, Orlando Bloom and Frances de la Tour, was cancelled the following year.
Janetti was previously criticised in 2018 for jokingly insinuating in a since-deleted Instagram post that Prince George, then just four, had a boyfriend after the young royal was photographed holding a fellow pageboy’s hand at Prince Harry and Meghan Markle’s wedding.
In 2017, a photo of the prince joyously clutching his face led to some social media users oddly dubbing him a “gay icon”.
Gay playwright Harris has reportedly founded a production company, and Prince F****t will be one of the first shows it produces.
Harris’ work, which includes co-producing Sam Levison’s gritty and contentious drama Euphoria, is known for courting controversy, with a West End production of Slave Play making waves in the UK in recent weeks.
The 2018 play, which is set on a plantation in America’s south and deals with themes of power dynamics, race, sex and interracial relationships, is scheduled to arrive at London’s Noël Coward Theatre in June. The production will host “Black Out” nights – performances reserved for an “all-Black-identifying-audience”.
In February, a spokesperson for prime minister Rishi Sunak dubbed the proposed nights wrong and divisive.
“The prime minister is a big supporter of the arts and believes [they] should be inclusive and open to everyone, particularly where those arts venues are in receipt of public funding,” the spokesman said.
“Black Out” nights featured as part of Slave Play’s original run on Broadway. For the West End version, the producers have said that only two shows will adopt the initiative. Harris has pointed that the nights mean Black people are invited “first,” but white audience members are welcome too.
In 2020, Slave Play was nominated for a record-breaking 12 Tony Awards, although it didn’t end up winning any.
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