--- description: A welcome-home kiss between Hikaru Sulu and his partner was cut from Star Trek Beyond, actor John Cho said. title: John Cho Says Gay Kiss Was Cut In 'Star Trek Beyond' image: https://static.time.com/v3/assets/bltea6093859af6183b/bltde093bcdab65f2d0/6988d9b9bc6cfc69913e2a3c/time-logo.jpg?branch=production --- * [Entertainment](/section/entertainment/) ## Entertainment Update your preferences in [Account Settings](/account/preferences/) Close # John Cho Says Gay Kiss Was Cut In _Star Trek Beyond_ by [Rosalie Chan](/author/rosalie-chan/) ## Rosalie Chan Update your preferences in [Account Settings](/account/preferences/) Close Jul 22, 2016 4:16 PM CUT by [Rosalie Chan](/author/rosalie-chan/) ## Rosalie Chan Update your preferences in [Account Settings](/account/preferences/) Close Jul 22, 2016 4:16 PM CUT A welcome-home kiss between [Hikaru Sulu](http://time.com/4396436/star-trek-lgbt-john-cho/?iid=sr-link3 "undefined") and his partner was cut from [_Star Trek Beyond_](http://time.com/4413135/star-trek-beyond-review/?iid=sr-link1 "undefined")_,_ actor [John Cho](http://time.com/3425716/selfie-john-cho-interview/?iid=sr-link1 "undefined") said. In [_Star Trek Beyond_](http://time.com/4417056/star-trek-beyond-anton-yelchin-tribute/?iid=sr-link3 "undefined"), Cho’s character Sulu is revealed to be gay, having a daughter with his male partner. Cho [told _Vulture_](http://www.vulture.com/2016/07/john-cho-star-trek-beyond-c-v-r.html "undefined"), that in the cut scene, the two men share a welcome-home kiss when they are at the airport with their daughter. [Simon Pegg](http://time.com/4408593/simon-pegg-star-trek-beyond-politics/?iid=sr-link1 "undefined"), who co-wrote the screenplay, had the idea to make Sulu gay. He [told](https://www.theguardian.com/film/2016/jul/21/john-cho-gay-kiss-cut-star-trek-beyond "undefined") _The Guardian_ that the gay couple’s representation is handled well and may be explored in upcoming films. [George Takei](http://time.com/3990410/george-takei-lgbt-star-trek/?iid=sr-link4 "undefined"), who came out as gay over a decade ago and played Sulu in [Gene Roddenberry’s _Star Trek_](http://time.com/4406710/star-trek-history-excerpt/?iid=sr-link1 "undefined") TV series, said in [a Facebook post earlier this month](https://www.facebook.com/georgehtakei/posts/1622484171114363 "undefined") that while he was “delighted” there was a gay character, he felt that making Sulu gay was a [twisting of Roddenberry’s original vision](http://time.com/4398071/george-takei-simon-pegg-sulu-gay-star-trek-beyond/?iid=sr-link2 "undefined"). Takei, an LGBT activist, first learned about Sulu being gay in _Star Trek Beyond_ from Cho, but Takei said he would prefer have a new gay character, rather than Sulu, “suddenly being revealed as being closeted.” ```json [{"@context":"https://schema.org","@type":"NewsArticle","@id":"https://time.com/4419304/star-trek-beyond-john-cho-gay-kiss/","mainEntityOfPage":{"@type":"WebPage","@id":"https://time.com/4419304/star-trek-beyond-john-cho-gay-kiss/"},"headline":"John Cho Says Gay Kiss Was Cut In Star Trek Beyond","datePublished":"2016-07-22T16:16:18.000Z","dateModified":"2026-04-13T07:34:42.567Z","description":"Sulu is revealed to be gay in the movie","url":"https://time.com/4419304/star-trek-beyond-john-cho-gay-kiss/","keywords":["Newsfeed","movies","celebrities","Pop Culture","LGBT"],"thumbnailUrl":"","author":[{"@type":"Person","name":"Rosalie Chan","jobTitle":null,"url":"https://time.com/author/rosalie-chan/"}],"articleSection":"Entertainment","image":[],"publisher":{"@type":"Organization","name":"Time","url":"https://time.com/","logo":{"@type":"ImageObject","url":"https://time.com/images/logo.png","width":528,"height":156},"foundingDate":"March 3, 1923","sameAs":["https://www.facebook.com/time","https://www.instagram.com/time/?hl=en","https://twitter.com/time","https://www.pinterest.com/timemagazine"]}},{"@context":"https://schema.org","@type":"BreadcrumbList","itemListElement":[{"@type":"ListItem","position":1,"item":{"@id":"/section/entertainment/","name":"Entertainment"}},{"@type":"ListItem","position":2,"item":{"@id":"https://time.com/4419304/star-trek-beyond-john-cho-gay-kiss/","name":"John Cho Says Gay Kiss Was Cut In Star Trek Beyond"}}]}] ```