Disney slammed for ‘shelving’ Moon Girl and Devil Dinosaur trans athlete episode: ‘Deplorable’
An LGBTQ+ episode of Moon Girl and Devil Dinosaur has reportedly been shelved. (Marvel/Disney)
Disney has disappointed Moon Girl and Devil Dinosaur fans after reportedly shelving an episode of the animated Marvel programme, “The Gatekeeper”, because of a trans athlete plot.
The animated TV series charts the adventures of 13-year-old prodigy Lunella Lafayette (Diamond White) and her T. rex sidekick, Devil Dinosaur (Fred Tatasciore), protecting New York City’s Lower East Side from danger.
According to Polygon, the season two episode which has made headlines is titled “The Gatekeeper” and follows Brooklyn (voiced by Pose star Indya Moore), Moon Girl’s trans classmate, competing in a girl’s volleyball game and “a narrow-minded coach” (Greer, played by Amy Sedaris) who tries to have the young girl banned from competing. It since appears to have been leaked online by an account called @LostMediaBuster.
In the episode Brooklyn’s coach, gym teacher Coach Hrbek, tells Greer, “Brooklyn IS a girl, and she’s gonna play.” Greer then uses a magical key to confine Brooklyn, her teammates, and Lunella in the girl’s locker room.
The coach’s position seems to echo the recent push in the US, and across the globe, to bar trans women from competing in sports that many worry will only continue with former president Donald Trump’s upcoming return to office and Republicans garnering a majority in the House and Senate.
In the episode, Brooklyn recalls her time spent playing soccer and “the darkness of me having to play on the boys team.”
According to clips leaked online, there is also a scene where Brooklyn emotionally opens up about being trans. “I’m trans, my very existence breaks Greer’s rules,” she tells her teammates before crying.
Artists who say they worked on the show have claimed that the episode was “shelved because of which party that won the recent election” in now-deleted social media posts.
“It breaks my heart knowing this impactful and amazing is now about to be consider a lost media episode,” they continued.
Other animation artists spoke out about Moon Girl and Devil Dinosaur episode “The Gatekeeper” and its alleged shelving. Emmy Cicirega, a storyboard artist on Gravity Falls, wrote: “Disney should be ashamed of themselves for canning this episode.
“You don’t get to approve approve approve something and then destroy it at the last minute, shattering the crews hard work and hopes.”
However, a source at Disney clarified to Polygon that the decision to shelve the episode occurred a year ago and is unrelated to the recent US election result.
That source said that “in this case, this decision was based on this specific episode, not because of the character being trans.” They said the episode is not specifically “banned” from airing, but being “held.” It’s unclear if the episode will ever see an official release.
Moon Girl and Devil Dinosaur fans haven’t held back on social media, slamming Disney for their decision to “hold” the episode.
One fan wrote: “The cruel irony of this episode about how trans people have to go through so many doors being slammed on their faces, and then this episode also gets a door slammed by Disney themselves.”
Another wrote: “The fact that Disney actually shelved that episode of Moon Girl and Devil Dinosaur at a time when LGBTQ+ and trans lives matter the most is deplorable.
“I know young children are gonna need this episode more than ever and it should be released cause trans lives matter.”
Moon Girl and Devil Dinosaur premiered in February 2023 but was cancelled after two seasons despite winning five Children’s and Family Emmy Awards.
However, Disney still has several more episodes that are expected to air next year.
Moon Girl and Devil Dinosaur is available to stream on Disney+.
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