By Allison Blair
If you thought we had finally gotten over Hollywood straight-washing adaptations, I fear you are gravely mistaken.
Netflix is currently developing a new show based on Oscar Wilde’s 1891 novel “The Picture of Dorian Gray.” Let’s just say, the show is taking some major creative liberties.
“The Picture of Dorian Gray” follows the story of Dorian Gray and his obsession with himself that could rival Narcissus. Dorian sells his soul to maintain his youth and beauty. He becomes the subject of a portrait for his artist friend Basil Hallward. This portrait grows old, while Dorian remains eternally youthful until he becomes consumed by his sins and misdeeds.
Dorian is not just a friend to Basil. Basil has a completely homoerotic infatuation with Dorian. Dorian and Basil having some sort of queer relationship is not just subtext, it is literally just the text. Basil goes on about how he adores Dorian, going as far to describe his feelings as idolatry.
When I first heard that the novel was getting adapted, I was thrilled. “Finally, there’s going to be an adaptation that does this book justice.” Oh, how wrong I was.
There is the slight chance that I could have accepted if the show just made them friends, but no, what this show has decided to do is so much worse.
Dorian and Basil will not just be friends in the show, they will also be brothers!
You did read that right. The show has decided to take a queer novel, written by a queer author, and turn the same-sex desire into a familial bond of some sort. This takes the “They’re just really good friends” to a whole other level.
You could argue that there isn’t anything homoerotic about this novel. You’d just be wrong.
Oscar Wilde was queer. He had an affair with a male British aristocrat and was arrested for it. At the time, homosexuality was a crime. “The Picture of Dorian Gray” was used as evidence against Wilde at his trial. After being tried, he was found guilty and sentenced to two years of hard labor for being queer.
If that wasn’t enough, the version of Wilde’s novel that we know today is not even the original version. The version we are most familiar with today is the censored version. The novel was censored because of the explicit and obvious queer themes. In the original version, Basil directly confesses to his love for Dorian.
I would love to know the thought process behind making Basil and Dorian brothers, because I have no clue how you can look at that novel and think “those two would make great siblings.” If you really think Basil and Dorian could be siblings, maybe give Freud a call.
Erasing the blatant queerness of this novel not only takes away from Wilde’s legacy, it is also just a nonsensical thing to do. Something that makes the novel so special is Basil waxing poetic about Dorian.
How is the series going to deal with the obvious tension between Dorian and Basil if they are brothers? I would honestly much rather the show erase the queerness than make the two have some weird incestuous relationship. If I wanted to watch an incestuous relationship, I’d go watch “House of the Dragon,” where the family tree is just a circle.
Unfortunately, I do think that when this show eventually comes out, I will be watching. I won’t be happy about watching it, but I’ll be watching to see how in the world they try and make Dorian and Basil as brothers make sense. My expectations are low, but I have a feeling that the show will somehow go lower.
The adaptation called “The Grays” is being produced by Berlanti Productions and Warner Bros. Television, and written by Katie Rose Rogers, who is also an executive producer along with her brother Robbie Rogers. The show currently has no release date.
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