Howard Surprised by Gay Controversy

Oscar-winning director Ron Howard says he "was a little surprised" by the controversy surrounding the "electric cars are gay" joke in his new film, The Dilemma, during an interview on the talk show The View.

Asked if people overreacted, Howard says he was surprised because "you see that used on TV shows, especially comedies" and the joke was being evaluated "out of context" and "it was a piece of advertising." He adds that he didn't remove it from the film because it's "the nature of that character Vince Vaughn plays" and it's "not lost on anyone within the framework of the scene."

The film was released in theaters yesterday and had a"disastrous" opening day, according to website Deadline. Entertainment insider Nikki Finke calls the opening "shockingly soft" for "a Ron Howard-directed movie starring proven box office strongmen Vince Vaughn and Kevin James."

Watch the interview with Howard below.[youtube https://www.youtube.com/v/4Kus7lhE6pM?fs=1&hl=en_US expand=1 site_id=25879312]