As audiences gear up for the character's return, director Rian Johnson confirms that Daniel Craig's Benoit Blanc is gay in Glass Onion: A Knives Out Mystery. Craig returns to lead Johnson's latest star-studded whodunnit as his eccentric private detective, Benoit Blanc, is invited for a Greek weekend getaway by Edward Norton's tech billionaire Miles Bron, only for someone to actually turn up dead. Alongside Craig, the cast for Glass Onion: A Knives Out Mystery includes Norton, Janelle Monáe, Kathryn Hahn, Leslie Odom Jr., Jessica Henwick, Madelyn Cline, Kate Hudson, and Dave Bautista.
Craig quickly scored widespread acclaim for his work as Benoit Blanc in the original Knives Out, even garnering a Golden Globe nomination for his performance in the film. Given his international popularity as the latest lead of the James Bond franchise, Blanc proved to be an interesting change of pace for Craig in the eyes of many audiences, retaining much of the super spy's suave demeanor while also featuring a variety of his own unique quirks, namely his thick Southern accent Craig forgot prior to filming the upcoming sequel, and his penchant for complicated monologues and figures of speech. With his having to focus on solving intricate cases, Blanc's love life never found its way into the original movie, but now, it appears audiences will be learning more about his private life in Glass Onion: A Knives Out Mystery.
While appearing at the London Film Festival press conference for the film, via Insider, Rian Johnson was asked about Benoit Blanc being gay in Glass Onion: A Knives Out Mystery after a scene showed the character living with another man. Johnson would confirm this to be the case, and shared his excitement at writing Blanc as such. See what Johnson said below:
Yes, he obviously is. And there's nobody in the world I can imagine in bringing me more joy for Benoit Blanc to be with.
How Knives Out 3 Can Build On Blanc's Sexuality
Johnson's confirmation on Benoit Blanc being gay seems to stem from just one scene in the 139-minute-long sequel, making it a nice subtle expansion of the Glass Onion: A Knives Out Mystery protagonist, if not a minimal one. Given a Knives Out 3 is already confirmed to be in the works at Netflix with Johnson and Craig returning, it would be interesting to see the two build on this aspect of the character, be it through a good amount of dialogue in which Blanc opens up about his significant other, or actually including more scenes with him and the undisclosed actor playing his partner. With so much of Blanc's life still largely unknown, some expansion of the franchise's central character could great benefit its lasting power, as well as potential other avenues to take Blanc's story in the future.
The decision to make Benoit Blanc gay in Glass Onion: A Knives Out Mystery not only proves to be a good form of representation, but also better set Daniel Craig's character apart from fellow eccentric private detective, Hercule Poirot. Agatha Christie's beloved character is enjoying a screen resurgence at the same time Craig's is taking off, thanks to Kenneth Branagh's movie franchise, which currently has a new installment in the works with A Haunting in Venice, though unlike Blanc, Poirot never had any direct confirmations of a relationship in the source novels, giving Blanc a unique edge on his genre counterpart. Only time will tell who stars as Craig's significant other when Glass Onion: A Knives Out Mystery hits theaters on November 23, followed by Netflix on December 23.
Source: Insider
