‘Ender’s Game’ author’s anti-LGBT views incite boycott of movie

Orson Scott Card is almost as well-known for his homophobic views as for his bestselling 1985 science fiction novel “Ender’s Game,” which was adapted into a film which was released on Nov. 1.

According to skipendersgame.com, Card claims that, “Regardless of law, marriage has only one definition, and any government that attempts to change it is my mortal enemy."

Card doesn't just speak about his views; he spent four years as a board member of the National Organization for Marriage, a non-profit political organization established in 2007 to work against the legalization of same-sex marriage in the United States. 

Since the film version of “Ender’s Game” came out, Card’s personal views have been brought into the limelight. A Lesbian, Gay, Bisexual, and Transgender (LGBT) organization called Geeks OUT has been calling on all filmgoers to boycott the movie because of Card’s anti-gay actions. They reason that, as a producer of the film, Card profits from movie tickets, DVDs, toys and other “Ender’s Game” merchandise purchased.

However, others say that the film really has nothing to do with the author’s views. In fact, the theme of compassion and empathy expressed throughout the story could be seen as the complete opposite of Card’s statements. 

Sophomore Saro Acharyo believes that the boycott targets the wrong issue; the movie and author are not connected.

"The boycott is a bit ridiculous," Acharyo said. "Yes, the author will get more money and benefit from the film, but the production team has distanced themselves from that side of [Card]. They omitted all anti-gay terms and themes from the book."

Sophomore Quan Vandinh said Card’s beliefs are morally wrong, but the boycott is essentially useless.

“I don’t see how boycotting [is really effective],” Vandinh said. “If everyone just stopped and no one watched the movie, then [it would be effective], but it was a good movie.”

Although Card’s personal views may be disagreeable to some, unlike many other movie adaptations, "Ender’s Game" made a decent attempt at expressing the book.

"I thought the movie was pretty good in translating the book to the big screen," Acharyo said. "There was a lot of material to cover, which affected the movie in that the pacing felt really rushed."

According to Acharyo, the storyline of the movie even left out important plot developments. 

Even students who didn’t read the novel thought the movie lacked something. 

Vandinh hoped for more character development with the main character Ender, saying that the film didn’t showcase Ender’s journey but rather had him stay the same throughout.

Like most book-based films, "Ender's Game" didn't quite meet the expectations of fans of the book.

"The book is far superior to the film as you are able to really go into Ender's psyche and find out what he is thinking," Acharyo said. "The book has far more depth into his character and thought process."