Theatre cancels screening of 'Beauty and the Beast' due to gay character

Moviegoers won't be able to catch the screening of 'Beauty and the Beast' at an Alabama theater as it has shunned the flick over the gay 'moment'.

Director Bill Condon recently told Attitude magazine that Josh Gad's LeFou - villain Gaston's (Luke Evans) eccentric sidekick - will be Disney's first-ever LGBTQ character - a way of honoring the original 1991 animated film's late lyricist Howard Ashman.

"It is with great sorrow that I have to tell our customers that we will not be showing 'Beauty and the Beast,'" read a message on the Facebook page of the Henagar Drive-In Theatre in the northeast portion of the state, reports CNN.

"If we can not take our 11-year-old granddaughter and 8-year-old grandson to see a movie we have no business watching it," the message said. "If I can't sit through a movie with God or Jesus sitting by me then we have no business showing it. We are first and foremost Christians.

"We will not compromise on what the Bible teaches. We will continue to show family-oriented films so you can feel free to come watch wholesome movies without worrying about sex, nudity, homosexuality and foul language."

The Facebook message said the theater came under new ownership in December.

On a related note, the film stars Emma Watson as Belle and Dan Stevens as the Beast.