Red, White & Royal Blue Movie: 5 things we love about Alex
Being both biracial and bisexual in a position of complete public visibility, the character of Alex Claremont-Diaz quickly became a crowd favorite among readers upon the release of the Red, White, & Royal Blue book by Casey McQuiston. When it was announced that the book was being adapted by Amazon Studios for the silver screen, the world collectively held its breath while we all waited to learn who was cast as Alex.
We didn’t know too much about Taylor Zakhar Perez when the announcement was made so we took to Google to learn all we could, and then simply waited patiently to see what he would do with the character of Alex in the movie adaptation. Taylor Zakhar Perez delivers a dynamic, vibrant performance in the film and embodies ACD in a way that we thought we could only hope for. But he’s real, and he did it, and the Alex Claremont-Diaz that now lives on our screens is perfect in every single way.
Journey with us as we gush over just 5 of the things that we love about Alex in the Red, White & Royal Blue movie.
1. More self-aware
In the source material, despite the fact that Henry (Nicholas Galitzine) isn’t actually his first foray into the world of men/boys, at the time that Henry kisses Alex, the poor dude is utterly unaware that he is lowkey into men/boys, until he finds himself enthusiastically kissing the prince back. He then descends into an internal exploration of his sexuality before he lands on the idea that he’s bisexual.
Movie Alex comes to us already cooked and ready and he seems aware that he at least isn’t straight. He tells Nora (Rachel Hilson) that he hooked up with a guy in high school, and has more recently also hooked up with Miguel (Juan Castano), the political reporter.
At the time Henry kisses him, Alex still doesn’t know that Henry is gay and into him, or that he himself likes Henry back (a dumbass in every universe), but we still love that Henry isn’t Alex’s big bisexual awakening.
This shift in Alex’s character allowed all of the anxiety around coming out to be removed from the film. While it’s clear Henry and Alex do think about the real world and political implications of their relationship, Alex being bisexual is simply normalized by the removal of this particular storyline. And while we understand that Alex’s coming out was so important to so many people who read the novel, the idea that people shouldn’t really need to come out, and just can be, really resonates with this version of Alex, and we love this for Alex – and for us – with all our hearts.
2. So stupidly in love
Like Henry, something that we just adore about the way Taylor Zakhar Perez brings Alex to life is that his love for Henry quite literally bleeds through the screen. We think Taylor Zakhar Perez might love Alex as much as we do (and maybe Henry, too) because when that man looks at Henry, we have to look away. The intimacy, the passion, the complete and total adoration that seeps from Alex’s eyes every time they fall on Henry is everything.
People in love stink, don’t they?!
Alex knows that his relationship with Henry could cost his mother the campaign, but he can’t stay away from the man. He tells Zahra (Sarah Shahi) as much very firmly when she asks him to walk away. When news of FirstPrince’s relationship breaks without their consent, they have the choice to deny the allegations, but instead, Alex gives a speech that airs around the world declaring his love for Henry, essentially laying claim to the man.
Alex Claremont-Diaz feels forever about Henry, and it’s clear that he isn’t letting anything stand in the way of that. Alex’s love for Henry awakens the Prince and raises him from the homophobic clutches of the crown. Without Alex, Henry probably would have carried out a life of complacency and service while he denied himself everything he rightfully deserves in life.
3. Tenacious, tenacious, tenacious
This is actually one of the things that we love about Alex Claremont-Diaz the most. He is tenacious in everything he does. Initially, he is tenacious in his dislike for Henry. We all know that he was confusing his feelings for those of lust and like with hate, but he manages to carry on the charade that he has no patience or time for Henry valiantly.
And then Henry kisses Alex on New Year’s Eve and his focus shifts. Alex becomes tenaciously focused on winning over the Prince and refusing to allow the man to avoid him any longer.
He tenaciously badgers his mother and her staff to read the memo he wrote for Ellen’s (Uma Thurman) re-election campaign because he believes so emphatically that his ideas can help.
He tenaciously chases after Henry when Henry gets scared of what their relationship means for his future, and high-tails it all the way to London to get his man.
He stands up to the public and declares his love for Henry to the world, even though it could mean the end of everything for him.
When Alex Claremont-Diaz believes in something, wants something, or sees something as right, he tenaciously pursues it with everything he has, despite how scary the consequences may be.
Taylor Zakhar Perez’s version of Alex is a modern-age queer hero. This is his world and we are all just lucky to be living in it!
4. His love for his country and desire to serve
Alex’s interest in politics has nothing to do with the idea of coveting power. He expresses to Henry that he does want to follow in his mother’s footsteps, but it’s because he gets a real kick out of helping others. For Alex, the idea of dedicating his life to helping those less fortunate than himself really matters to him.
He believes in Texas, believes in the people of Texas, and wants to do everything he can to serve the people of his state. Without this part of his personality, we’re not sure that Alex would be the man he is – the man we all so desperately love.
And intrinsically tied to this idea of servitude is the notion that whether he wanted it or not, Alex becomes a role model for young queer people of color in the United States almost overnight.
He seems to understand that his public persona comes with responsibility, and when Miguel outs FirstPrince, Alex steps into the light and accepts this new role of servitude with dignity, even though he says this is not the way he would have liked this to occur.
5. Idealism
Where Henry lives in a world of pessimism (or he did until Alex crashed into his life), Alex lives in a pool of idealism. He really does think he can have it all. There is something completely and totally inspiring about watching a biracial, bisexual young kid from a mostly conservative state, walk out into the world and just take what he thinks he deserves, and do it with the utmost confidence.
He shows Henry that they don’t have to live by political or social constraints. That they can have each other, in any way they decide, and have the rest of the things they want to, regardless of tradition or politics. Alex’s idealism awakens Henry and honestly, us too.
Queer people everywhere need a role model like Alex Claremont-Diaz right now. There has never been a more important time for someone like Alex to come along and shine a light on this path of righteous idealism for us all. If Alex can do it, we can too.
Taylor Zakhar Perez delivers a formidable performance as Alex that brings his truths to life on screen. Fans everywhere, we were all collectively holding our breath, just hoping that some semblance of the Alex we all knew and loved would make it onto your screens. Thanks to Taylor Zakhar Perez, we got so much more than that. If it’s possible, we love Alex Claremont-Diaz even more than we did before the movie came out. Positive, happy, healthy bisexual representation is sorely lacking in modern media. Thank you to Zakhar Perez for giving the community the very best version of Alex possible.
We are not worthy.
Red, White & Royal Blue is available to stream through Amazon Prime Video now. Follow us on Twitter and Instagram for all queer stuff!
