Why Did Richie Tozier’s Secret Stay Secret? (IT: 2 Spoilers)
WELP for the first time since 2016 I am jumping directly into the discourse about a pop culture event slightly ahead of the game (which I did twice).
For the record, I seem to be the only not-edgelord that believes the gay-bashing scene at the beginning of the movie is completely appropriate. With an important caveat that I will explain.
For the record, here is my full review of IT: Chapter 2 —” I genuinely deeply enjoyed… 90% of it. The jolting non-sequitor use of Juice Newton’s “Angel Of The Morning” was especially tedious because Deadpool already did that particular juxtaposition humor way better. There were so many spoonfed Easter Eggs I literally got sick of them and wished there were more subtle ones. And also I just absolutely hate “The Leper” creature because it looks so laughably corny and tryhard and it shows up in this movie way more than the first one and I hate it. Other than that (and a certain other thing) I enjoyed it way better than the first movie.” — Rani Baker
I’m gonna talk about that other thing now.
SPOILERS AND SHIT I WARNED YOU
“They’ll all pinch my cheek and tell me how much I’ve grown,” Eddie said.
“That’s cause they know how cute you are, Eds — just like me. I saw what a cutie you were the first time I met you.”
“Sometimes you’re really a turd, Richie.”
“It takes one to know one, Eds, and you know em all. You gonna be down in the Barrens next week?” — Stephen King’s IT, page 331
So, hold up, Richie Tozier is a closeted gay man in IT: Chapter 2. That’s literally his character arc, and yet it is somehow incredibly obvious but also never directly addressed. As in, I watched the whole damn movie and then like ten minutes later asked my straight friend that took me to the film “Wait, is Richie supposed to be gay?” and he was like “I’m not sure.” It was just… unusually coy for a modern movie. Which is funny, because Bill Hader specifically went on record saying that being coy about this would be the wrong move.
