Pixar used to be the gold standard for animated storytelling—films like "Toy Story," "The Incredibles," and "Up" didn’t just entertain; they resonated with families because they were grounded in solid storytelling and characters. But those days are fading fast, and the recent disaster that is “Elio” is a glaring example of what happens when a studio trades timeless storytelling for pushing propaganda.
According to a Pixar artist who worked on “Elio,” the film was “totally nothing” without its original LGBT agenda. Let that sink in. The artist told The Hollywood Reporter, “Suddenly, you remove this big, key piece, which is all about identity, and Elio just becomes about totally nothing.”
That’s not a critique from some outsider; that’s someone who was in the trenches, watching the creative process unravel as the studio leadership sanded down every moment that alluded to Elio’s supposed "queer identity."
“It was pretty clear through the production of the first version of the film that [studio leaders] were constantly sanding down these moments in the film that alluded to Elio’s sexuality of being queer,” the artist explained.
Related: Pixar’s ‘Elio’ Was Originally ‘Queer-Coded'
Did I mention the character Elio is just 11 years old? Imagine being an adult making a children’s movie that is built on the foundation of a child’s sexual identity. If you don’t see a problem with this, it’s a safe bet you’re a leftist.
When the original director, Adrian Molina—who is openly gay—left the project after Disney’s higher-ups stripped out the creepy sexual identity elements, other key creatives followed him out the door.
What does this tell us? It’s simple: Pixar’s creative core has been hollowed out, replaced by a compulsive need to inject leftist social messaging into every frame. When that messaging is removed, there’s no story left. The artist’s own admission is damning—without the child’s sexual identity, there was nothing holding the movie together. In other words, that was the entire point of the project: to push LGBTQ propaganda on children.
This is not how great stories are made. It might be how predators are made, but not great stories. A real story is built on character, conflict, and universal truths—not on checking off boxes for the latest activist cause.
Let’s not forget: audiences have already spoken on this issue. Disney’s “Strange World” featured an openly LGBT character. It absolutely bombed at the box office. “Lightyear” is another example. It got a lot of attention for featuring a same-sex kiss, but no one wanted to actually see the movie. But, here’s the thing: This phenomenon is not just with children’s movies. Remember that gay romantic comedy “Bros” that tanked? Heck, even the LGBTQ community didn’t waste its time going to see it.
If Pixar wants to regain its former glory, it needs to rediscover what made its classics endure: stories that promote virtue, heroism, and genuine human connection. That means rejecting the relentless push for ideological conformity and getting back to basics. Until then, audiences will keep tuning out, and Pixar’s films will remain, in the words of its own artist, “about totally nothing.”
