During a promotional event in Australia, John Cho confirmed that beloved Star Trek character Hikaru Sulu is gay.
Sulu was originally played by George Takei, who in later life has become a prominent activist for LGBT rights. In a tribute to his ongoing legacy as an icon of the Star Trek franchise, Star Trek Beyond writer Simon Pegg and director Justin Lin decided make Sulu canonically gay in the upcoming movie.
“I liked [Pegg and Lin’s] approach, which was not to make a big thing out of it, which is where I hope we are going as a species, to not politicize one’s personal orientations,” Cho said.