Deep Inside Hollywood
by Romeo San VicenteCoogan and Keener Take Hamlet to High School
If you remember the bisexual love triangle comedy Threesome, then you know the work of gay director Andrew Fleming. Since then, he has directed Nancy Drew and an ill-advised remake of The In-Laws. But now, he has returned to his oddball roots with the Steve Coogan/Catherine Keener comedy Hamlet 2.
Coogan plays a delusional former actor turned high school drama teacher who decides that what Shakespeare’s greatest tragedy really needs is a sequel—never mind that every character in the first play dies at the end.
The indie feature—which costars Amy Poehler and David Arquette—was the toast of the Sundance Film Festival (where distributors are anxious to find the next Juno or Little Miss Sunshine). Hamlet 2. has just been acquired by Focus Features for release later this year. Now, all it has to do is make back its $10 million purchase price.
Dancing with the Stars Goes Gay(ish)
Now, queer fans of Dancing with the Stars will have more than a few reasons to catch next season’s choreographed dance-battle. The cast has just been announced, and it’s as gay-friendly a roundup as one should be able to expect from a show revolving around ballroom dancing.
Queer-adjacent celebrity-steppers include Will & Grace’s Sean Hayes; Oscar-winner Marlee Matlin (currently spicing up The L Word by teaching audiences naughty lesbian sex words in American Sign Language); and the ebullient Tony Award-winning Marissa Jaret Winokur, who tore up the stage as the original Tracy Turnblad in Broadway’s Hairspray.
Now, all that needs to happen is for Harvey Fierstein and Elton John to come in and be guest judges.
American Idol and Disney: A Marriage in Karaoke Heaven
What’s so gay about American Idol? If you’ve ever seen the show, then you know that what’s not gay is the more difficult question to answer.
From the sheer overwhelming numbers of visibly gay young men who audition each year in the cattle-call rounds to the ongoing saga of one of its big success stories continuing to dodge questions about his sexuality, Idol is a show for every queer kid who dreams of fame as the ultimate revenge.
And now, the hit show will be accessible to those kids anytime they go to Walt Disney World, as a competition-based, Idol-themed, tie-in attraction gets installed down Florida way. The miniature karaoke contest will feed into the actual show, with winners getting guaranteed audition slots in the upcoming season. In other words, here’s a way to get around waiting in one of those pesky 10,000-person-strong stadium lines. The attraction is set to open later this year.
Romeo San Vicente thinks Ryan Seacrest should switch stylists. Romeo can be reached care of this publication, or at DeepInsideHollywood@qsyndicate.com.