Shot:

The WGA West is calling on Hollywood to reconsider filming in Florida if Gov. Ron DeSantis signs the so-called “Don’t Say Gay” bill passed by the state’s legislature last week.

“We urge all WGA signatory companies to reassess not only their political giving, but also where they choose to spend their production dollars,” the guild said in a statement Tuesday. “Show, don’t tell, that you value the LGBTQ+ community.”

Chaser:

On the heels of a rare public gaffe for The Walt Disney Co. — regarding the media giant’s silence over Florida’s incendiary “Don’t Say Gay” law — the GLAAD Media Awards used its annual Los Angeles show to caution the rest of Hollywood about the perils of ignoring the LGBT community.

“Don’t wait until you’re in the hot seat,” the media watchdog’s president and CEO Sarah Kate Ellis bluntly told the crowd at the Beverly Hilton Hotel on Saturday. “There’s no more time to sit on the sidelines. We need Hollywood on the front lines, fighting for our rights and telling our stories.”

Aaaaaaaannnnnd … scene:

References to a gay relationship in “Fantastic Beasts: The Secrets of Dumbledore” were edited out of the movie by Warner Bros. for the film’s release in China. Only six seconds of the movie’s 142-minute runtime were removed. Dialogue that was edited out alluded to the romantic past between male characters Dumbledore (Jude Law) and Grindelwald (Mads Mikkelsen). “Harry Potter” author J.K. Rowling revealed Dumbledore was gay in 2009, but the movies had never explicitly referenced the character’s sexuality until this third “Fantastic Beasts” entry.

Warner Bros. accepted China’s request to remove six seconds from the movie. The dialogue lines “because I was in love with you” and “the summer Gellert and I fell in love” were cut from “The Secrets of Dumbledore” release (via News.com.au). The rest of the film remained intact, including an understanding that Dumbledore and Grindelwald share an intimate bond.

“As a studio, we’re committed to safeguarding the integrity of every film we release, and that extends to circumstances that necessitate making nuanced cuts in order to respond sensitively to a variety of in-market factors,” Warner Bros. said in a statement to Variety. “Our hope is to release our features worldwide as released by their creators but historically we have faced small edits made in local markets.”

So much for “fighting for our rights and telling our stories,” eh? This is the same crowd that drummed creator J.K. Rowling out of polite progressive society for actually telling these stories but still insisting that biological sex matters. And now they’re selling out for Xi-bucks while posing as courageous activists when it comes to the hostile regions of, er, democratic and free Florida.

The irony here is so palpable you can taste it. There isn’t any provision in Florida’s Parental Rights in Education Act that prohibits saying the word “gay.” The law instead restricts any discussion of gender theory or sexual orientation in sex education to fourth grade and up, and requires it to be taught in an age-appropriate manner. Hollywood and its elite have been screeching about “don’t say gay” anyway as a demagogic campaign to demonize Florida’s parents and Governor Ron DeSantis for resisting indoctrination of their children.

And yet, when Hollywood has an opportunity to put its money where its collective mouth is in a very literal sense by depicting gay love, what do they do? The American entertainment industry consents to have its collective mouth taped shut by a dictator in China so that they can access China’s markets. Warner Brothers is hardly alone in this, either; Disney had its nose so far up Xi Jinping’s rear that it actually bragged about filming in Xinjiang in close proximity to Uyghur concentration camps. The NBA has been even worse, sidelining and marginalizing its employees for daring to point out China’s oppression and genocide.

Regardless of whatever one thinks of Florida’s new law, it at least serves the will of the people of Florida as expressed in their democratic institutions. Hollywood and the rest of the American entertainment industry seems determined to serve China’s dictator instead of its US audiences, in spite of its moral posturing and preening here at home. What a bunch of phonies, hypocrites, and moral cowards.