Lizzie McGuire’s Reboot Is Shaping Up To Be The Best Yet, But We Do Need LGBTQ Representation
Have you heard about the next most anticipated reboot? Coming to Disney+ in 2020 is the continued story of Lizzie McGuire. If you aren’t familiar with the series, Lizzie McGuire followed seventh grade Lizzie (played by Millennial favorite, Hilary Duff) and her two best friends, Miranda Sanchez (Lalaine) and David “Gordo” Gordon (Adam Lamberg) navigating themselves through junior high as they learn lessons about maturing into a young adult. The show originally aired on the Disney Channel and was the pioneer of any live action series on the network. Eventually, That’s So Raven, Wizards of Waverly Place, and Hannah Montana would follow suit due to the extreme fandom and unique storylines for a Disney series. I’m not kidding, upon rewatching, Disney handled some subjects that should’ve been considered “sensitive” for their audience. We witnessed Lizzie venturing for her first bra, severe bullying, interracial dating, first breakups, and struggling with embarrassing parents. If you were a tween (remember that word?) like I was during the McGuire era, chances are you were obsessed with the series.
We’ve slowly been getting some details on the new McGuire series. Duff is set to return with her original TV-family members, including her younger brother, father (Robert Carradine), and mother (Hallie Todd). Lizzie’s dreamy middle school crush (Clayton Synder) is set to return, as well as her best male friend, Gordo. Unfortunately, the actress who played Miranda has been involved in a series of drug charges and is unlikely to return due to liability. Lizzie’s arch nemesis, Kate Saunders (Ashlie Brillault), is a District Attorney in Colorado who has quit acting after the series wrapped, but I’m not holding out hope for a cameo from her. The new premise follows Lizzie navigating leaving New York City and returning to her hometown as a lost thirty-year-old who is still trying to find herself. Something many Millennials can relate too. We need Lizzie back in our lives now more than ever.
Lizzie McGuire, in my opinion, was ahead of it’s time. Lizzie’s younger brother had an incredibly diverse friend group, most representing the upcoming generation of inclusivity, the cast of characters were a variety of colors, persons, and personalities (albeit stereotypical), and the struggles she had with an overbearing mother would come full circle when she realized her mother was truly her best friend and biggest supporter. If you’re rewatching episodes, you’ll remember the nostalgia, and may recognize one particular character was obviously a shout out to their LGBTQ fans: Gordo! Hello!
In the run of the series, Gordo was Lizzie’s best friend – who randomly developed a crush on her, despite them knowing one another as friends and neighbors since they were babies. Upon a rewatch, and even being “woke” at the time, it just doesn’t make sense. The relationship the two shared once was strictly platonic until the writer’s decided they should be made for each other. It took away the genuine platonic love a man and a woman could share, especially when that man is (closeted) gay. The only problem is, it was so obvious Gordo would grow up to be gay. He only surrounded himself with women to gab and gossip and had no interest in any male activities. In my youth, I had crushes on girls, but perhaps it’s because I didn’t just love them but also wanted to be them. Gordo held Lizzie’s hand, being the angel on her shoulder and also a therapist, as she journeyed into young adulthood after being tormented by bullies, boys, and life lessons. It would be fitting for Gordo to eventually have moved on and came out after high school – something that, if they are still best friends, Lizzie should know about at the start of the reboot. Doubtful, but we can wish.
I’m not one for forced agendas of any time. Typically, we should be against pushing representation in art for the sake of inclusivity, because that’s not how it works. However, Gordo being a gay character just makes the most logical sense. At the very least, if Disney doesn’t want to stray too far away from their original material, I’m sure we’ll see Lizzie and Gordo eventually end up together. Because, you know, you always end up with your middle school crush (eye roll). At the very least, as Duff herself is an active LGBTQ ally, I’m sure we’ll have a slew of gay characters in her life as her friends (as the series will take place in New York and California), but the one that the gay fandom deserves is Gordo. To have him be an out character at the start of the reboot would make so much sense and can provide a sincere storyline of platonic friendship between a gay and his best girl. Come on Disney+, give us what we want!
Writer’s Note: This is the opinion of one Instinct Magazine contributor and does not reflect the views of Instinct Magazine itself or fellow contributors.
Is 10 tattoos an excessive amount of on a man? Tattoos are
for yourself not really for others. Tattoos are
for yourself not for others.
Why is this writer trying to make Lizzie McGuire about him?