‘Gatsby’ Goes Queer with New Reimagining
In November, a queer, POC-centered reimagining of the The Great Gatsby is coming. The story will focus on the perspective of Lu Zhao, a Singaporean student who spends the summer with his rich cousin, Tommy. As this is a modern retelling of the original 1925 story, Lu will deal with modern temptations in Long Island.
This graphic novel retelling of The Great Gatsby isn’t the first reimagining or continuation of the story. Just recently, Nghi Vo’s The Chosen and the Beautiful released in June 2021, as well as A.J. Odasso’s The Pursued and the Pursuing, published in late 2021.
For this graphic novel, author Jeremy Holt was joined by an entire creative team at publisher AWA Studios, which includes artist Felipe Cunha, colorist Dearbhla Kelly, and letterer Adam Wollet.
This also isn’t Holt’s first time writing in comic form: They’ve written several other comics before, including Made in Korea and Virtually Yours. Holt refused to give too much away about the graphic novel, saying that audiences will definitely see Lu exploring sexuality and gender in the graphic retelling.
The Great Gatsby is a staple in literature courses across the nation and considered a classic story. Originally, though, it saw a well-received release, and then it vanished into the aether. The book made its return to the purview of the general population in the 50s. Still, many have not read it. The author, Jeremy Holt, even admits that they didn’t read the work until 2017.
An interesting thing to note about The Great Gatsby is that it entered the public domain in 2021; this allows artists and authors to adapt this work without permission. So, if you see a slew of Gatsby-related work, the entry into the public domain is a big reason why.
Blake Hazard, the great-granddaughter of the original The Great Gatsby author, F. Scott Fitzgerald, has high hopes for the future of the story. In 2020, in anticipation of the book entering the public domain, Hazard said, “I would love to see an inclusive adaptation of Gatsby, with a diverse cast.”
Holt tells The Advocate, “I just hope that somewhere, somehow, Fitzgerald’s great-granddaughter reads this.”
If there are any further filmed adaptations of The Great Gatsby, AWA Studios’ Gatsby could serve as a welcome option.
Gatsby, published by AWA Studios, will be available on shelves and digitally November.
Photo courtesy of AWA Studios
