Solo: Star Wars Story takes place in a galaxy far, far, away, in a universe with talking teddy bears and sentient sexy robots, and the heroes are a cult of magical space wizards who commit genocide in order to restore “balance” to the universe. The idea that humans would have sex only with other humans, let alone only other humans of the opposite sex, is just ridiculous. Of course Lando would be pansexual. The problem is, why isn’t Han Solo, too? For that matter, why isn’t the whole damn cast?
The reason is that Hollywood films, as an extension of white American pop culture, view black bodies and sexuality as commodities for exploitation and experimentation.
From the creation of Sapphires to Mandingos, white America has always worked out its sexual hang-ups with black bodies, while placing firm boundaries around white sexual norms. In movies, interracial relationships are fine so long as it’s a white man and a black woman; you can cast LGBTQ men and women so long as they’re black or people of color and the main hero remains white and straight and usually male.
All of these casting and identity decisions are rooted in the historically racist way in which black American sexuality is managed on-screen so as to not offend or upset the white gaze.
In our heteronormative culture, a pansexual Lando Calrissian is no threat to Han Solo as the dominant lead in the film—in the same way that John Boyega is automatically “shipped” with a white man in The Force Awakens and forced to fawn over his handsome white male co-star in Pacific Rim Uprising.
Gay black men, black women with white guys, and sexually ambiguous black men pose no threat to the fragile sexual ego of the white male or female moviegoer or lead characters.
I’m all for Lando Calrissian being pansexual—let him flirt with men and women and aliens and robots with sexy USB ports. Let’s just be aware that this is Hollywood’s same old white experimentation with black sexuality, not some progressive act of LGBTQ and black inclusion.
Until I see Captain America and Winter Soldier discuss that one night in a foxhole during World War II; until Obi-Wan and Anakin admit that they might’ve been more than just Padawan and “master”; until Han Solo admits on-screen that he was a little jealous when Leia kissed Luke, but not for the reason that you think—no real barriers have been broken, and Disney shouldn’t be getting any credit.
https://www.theroot.com/is-making-star-wars-lando-calrissian-pansexual-an-as-1826128745
