MYSTERIOUS HIM

Joseph Gordon-Levitt On Addressing Gay Rumors: “That’s Tacky”

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Adorably pint-sized leading man Joseph Gordon-Levitt is no stranger to gay fans, from his brilliant turn as a gay hustler in Gregg Araki’s 2004 drama, Mysterious Skin, and let’s not forget a minor part he had in gay rom-com Latter Days. Though rumors of his sexuality have floated around for years, JGL has always remained unfazed, as illustrated in this anecdote from his recent profile in Out:

Watching Joseph Gordon-Levitt’s short movie Pictures of Assholes is deeply instructive. In a virtuoso example of table-turning, the young actor channels his camera on the paparazzi that are hounding him and a friend in New York City. When Gordon-Levitt politely asks their names, they bristle with injury and insult, responding with “Asshole” and “Asshole Jr.” Gordon-Levitt is undeterred, politely interrogating them as they pile insult on insult. Finally, the younger paparazzo comes clean about their motive: “We saw a young star with another guy, and it’s implied that there’s something going on,” he says coyly. “The whole gay thing — it intrigues people.”

Gordon-Levitt is a new type of leading man for a new generation — one who doesn’t feel the need to fly after every tabloid, lawyers blazing, that claims he’s gay. “That would be really tacky,” the 32-year-old actor said, “they would win if I had to clarify.”

Think of Joseph Gordon-Levitt as a less gay-baity James Franco with a gag reflex.

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