Bringing queerness to the surface: Truman Capote's November 1971 screenplay adaptation of F. Scott Fitzgerald's The Great Gatsby.

This article examines Truman Capote's adaptation of F. Scott Fitzgerald's *The Great Gatsby* screenplay in the early 1970s, focusing on how Capote, an openly gay man, incorporated queer themes within the constraints of a heteronormative Hollywood system. It addresses longstanding rumors that Capote was fired from the project due to his queer characterization of Nick Carraway and Jordan Baker, arguing that Capote employed "working-within-the-system tactics" to subtly suggest queerness while navigating studio pressures for a mainstream heterosexual romance. The analysis highlights explicit and covert queer elements in Capote's script, such as the homoerotic skinny-dipping scene between Nick and Gatsby and Jordan's lesbian-coded behavior, and situates these within Capote's personal struggles and the professional challenges he faced. The article also discusses the absence of certain overt queer moments likely due to studio censorship and calls for further research to locate missing drafts that could clarify Capote's intentions.