When GQ Australia asked actor Taylor Lautner if director Gus Van Sant and screenwriter Dustin Lance Black hit on him during their LA dinner meeting, Black was thoroughly unamused at the suggestion that he’s just a sexual predator who always makes passes at boys with nice asses. Now GQ has responded with the kind of pap you’d expect from a magazine that’s mostly advertisements.
Lautner originally replied, “No, definitely not. I think they know I’m straight,” (sure Taylor, sure). But 37-year-old Black was not as cordial as 19-year-old Lautner. Black responded:
“Really Mr. GQ writer? I’m curious, will you be asking all of the handsome actors I’ve ever had the privilege of working with or meeting if I made passes at them as well? I’d love to be there when you ask Sean Penn that same question. Or, Mr. GQ writer, were you projecting your own unprofessional desires onto me and Gus? Perhaps? Or worse still, are you a homophobe?”
Well, GQ Australia decided to address this teapot tempest by finally releasing a statement about why they ask the same questions a sixth grader would come up with:
We’ve seen some of the comments floating around regarding our recent interview with Taylor Lautner and apologise if anyone was offended by anything in the article. It certainly wasn’t our intention to paint anyone in the story as a sexual predator. The point we were actually trying to push was that Taylor is irresistible to virtually everyone – regardless of sexuality or gender. Hence the film crew cheering at his shirtless scenes while shooting Twilight, and Mark Wahlberg deeming him better looking than Leonardo Di Caprio.
Translation: Lautner is such a hot piece of jailbait that everyone—straight or gay—has no choice but to act like our interviewer and drool over his lumps.
That Taylor, ‘he’s so hot right now.’ Give us a break.
GQ basically perpetuates the drivel of Hollywood PR peeps. In this instance, Lautner’s in a theatrical flop where tons of strangers (mostly men) chase after him. So that’s GQ’s line as well—everyone wants Taylor. Especially gay professionals with nice, warm casting couches.
Give the people what they want.
Mike in Asheville
And yet you too Queerty just can’t help it to add the snarky “sure, Taylor, sure.”
Clean your own act up before pointing fingers at others.
Pete n SFO
I’m surprised that GQ issued any kind of apology… likely because DLB rightly threatened a defamation suit.
Remember when GQ actually had articles w/ some depth & interest… back in the ’80’s!
Lautner, like lots of actors, is off-the-charts handsome, but the question still remains, is that a question they ask of all Directors & their talent? Nope. Which just makes it homophobia.
meego
Taylor Lautner went to his PR people and threatened to go public and tell all about the fake dates they sent him on, the sham relationships to cover up the fact that he’s gay. This worked for a while as they eased up on pressuring him to play the game. After a while, though, his PR folks threatened to ruin him if he did not play the game. Apparently, Taylor decided that fame is worth more than being who you really are.
DJ Veno
Sorry but I don’t want this kid on any level, not my cup of tea.
Michael
He’s straight??? Um, yeah, and this is exactly he brought his boyfriend to the People’s Choice Awards two years ago (the same night Hugh Jackman brought his). Such PR, such PR….
steve
Okay where to start
– I for one don’t want to sleep with him. He’s got an awesome body sure but I’m team Edward all the way
– GQ is trying so hard to stay relevant it stinks of desperation
– @ Meego, I doubt that’s how the story goes. Taylor probably is gay but he most likely wants to see if his career can gain momentum post Twilight before coming out. So far it’s not looking good
– Lastly, who the hell cares what Mark Wahlberg thinks…
Mark
Perhaps if he had a sack over his head. Otherwise, I’d really rather not.
timncguy
I just don’t see it. Yeah, great body. But, he has a very strange looking face dominated by a pig nose.
Casper
…Sorry guys, I’m not attracted to him at all. He’s quiet strange looking and exotic, but that’s about as far as it goes for me……I’ll pass.
Cam
GQ still publishes?
shle896
He’s got a great bod, no doubt about it, but otherwise I think he looks like a neanderthal.
iDavid
I am more disappointed in Lautner than anyone. He just “came out” with “I’m straight”.
1) Not “everyone” is attracted to Lautner. He fits the model of perpetual “boy toy” imo, which many find doesn’t fit their preference of a “man” they might prefer. And no, lust based preferences do not equate to fear based racism.
2) Hets have been doing casting couch ad nauseum in Hollywood since it’s inception. AustraliaGQ got real and brought it “out” on a gay man’s dime. It’s called pulling back the carpet. Maybe not kosher to some, but honest and realistic. No apology necessary. Go Aussies.
3) Black could have addressed the GQ interview from an educational rather than a victim stance.
4) Lautner has dodged his personal life since day one. Meaning, “I’m gay” but refuses to throw down his locker room towel.
5) Kids need good role models and Lautner has imo, let our culture war down. He knows what’s right, while throwing “the team” under the bus for his own personal gain.
My greatest disappointment is that Lautner lied. Though he may be the leading man image, he could bust down that stereotype and still remain a box office hit. He’s too “hot” to nose dive regardless of sexual orientation.
The younger generation is proud of pushing honesty rather than lies, what happened to Lautner? How many kids could find emotional courage on any number of instances in life, had he told the truth? Considering the rash of gay suicides, I don’t see how the guy can live with himself.
Regarding gay stars in the business who choose to come out, this is where Quinto succeeds, in Spades, and Lautner fails, in Jokers.
evanb
Resistable.
Cam
@iDavid:
His Movie Tanked, I would like to tell all the homophobic bigoted publicists and managers in Hollywood this.
Why do you not blame his movie tanking on him being Straight? You blame gay actors career issues if they have any on them being out. So what is the issue here? Perhaps Lautner being “Straight” wrecked the box office on his last movie you homophobic turds.
Shawn
Kids pick up that Lautner’s gay. Now they pick up that he’s a liar. Kids aren’t stupid. Many of them have perfect gaydar.
What a let down.
Ouch.
meego
@Shawn: Exactly! The let down will manifest itself in the form of his movies and career tanking. Hell, his first solo attempt was flop city!
iDavid
@Cam,
I laid “blame” only, on the fact Lautner lied. Otherwise all else you mentioned, I see as speculative.
Cam
@iDavid:
Sorry David,
I meant to type “Agreed” with your comment.
The comment I typed after was not directed at you. I actually agreed with your post.
meego
Concerning Lautner’s appeal as a “leading man” :
Sure, Taylor Lautner (2010’s “Eclipse”) looks good when he’s ripping off his shirt and turning into a werewolf, but does he have what it takes to carry an entire film? “Abduction,” his first solo headlining gig since hitting it big with the “Twilight” series, answers this question with a doubtful shrug. Granted, few actors (if any) could make this particular project work—as disquietingly directed by John Singleton (2003’s “2 Fast 2 Furious”) and inanely written by musician Shawn Christensen, it’s increasingly dopey—but Lautner isn’t exactly a master thespian, either. He’s not hopeless like Alex Pettyfer—at least there’s a sliver of charisma in what he does—but as a performer he has the complexity of a Tinker Toy.
iDavid
@Cam
Gotchya. 😉
Shawn
@Meego,
You could be right. Recovering from telling the truth could be much easier on his career than recovering from a lie. He may have just done himself in. He now becomes focused fodder for “outing”. He should have held his tongue or told the truth. But lie? His bad.
My respect level along with Abduction, has now “tanked” for Lautner.
Mr. Enemabag Jones
@Pete n SFO:
Remember when GQ actually had articles w/ some depth & interest… back in the ’80?s!
Yep.
feathers
Taylor is gay. There would not be this much talk about it if he wasn’t. I mean seriously.
Spike
Just a matter of time before he becomes a Scientologist and has a string of ex-wives and jumping on Oprah’s couch with crazy eyes.
iDavid
This is the most honest Lautner gay answer I can dig up. In an uncomfortable game show style response when Oprah asked him what his “ideal woman would be like”
he responded,
“specifically. I have to choose a lady right”?
duh. oh boy. That was a gay man’s response.
No straight brain would have EVER even gone there.
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=fNepvB619h0
meego
@iDavid: I remember that. That was a dead giveaway!
Dean
I like him, even though it seems no-one else does.
~PR~
this specualtion is silly. he may be gay, sure, but what exactly is this being based on? where is the proof? A guy cannot bring a male friend to social functions now? OMG… does that mean all the guys I used to hang out with in the military were gay? GASP! But seriously, I hear all this conjecture… please, someone, provide me with factual evidence that he is gay. Until then, I’m not jumping on this ‘every attractive male celebrity is gay’ bandwagon.
meego
@~PR~: I was wondering how long it would take for his PR team to rush here to his defense. Nice try!
Zen
Ew I do not find him attractive. There is something odd and unattractive about his face, and I’m not into way over muscled guys who need to take a break from the gym.
JayKay
Funny how it’s always the cute, young guys that the bitter, fat, old queens want to drag out of the closet whether they like it or not (even whether they’re gay or not)…
Where’s all this baseless speculation for Steve Buscemi and Clint Howard?
meego
@JayKay: I take it you have seen/met each and every person who posts here so that you can then write about what they look like?
WillBFair
This is standard hollywood pr. When they have an unatractive actor, they have to tell the public how hot he is. It’s often done on screen, as when Pheobe on Freinds papitated over Brad Pitt. I’ve seen it done with all the third raters: What’s his face from Goodwill Hunting, Leanardo diCaprio, etc…, ad nauseam.
Rob
I don’t find this guy attractive and I don’t want to have sex with him at all.
trevor bartlet
Come on. EVERYONE knows GQ has gone to hell under its current Editor. The mag truly sucks.
~PR~
@meego: Think what you want hun. I don’t even know the guy. He doesn’t appear to have the penhant for getting his hands dirty like I do. I’m simply asking for the proof that everyone must have somewhere. I would ask for it in any case where there is specualtion about any celebrities sexuality. This could just be niave… my gaydar, after all, is broken. It goes off for straight guys, which as you can imagine, made my stint in the AF super fun. ;P
~PR~
and also, why is it that people insist that ceratin celebrity PR agents come here to comment simply because the poster in question breaks ranks with the rest and questions the “mainstream” view. As someone who posts on this site often, I find the claim silly and evidence that some on here have a little paranoia action going on. I honestly could care less about the guy BECAUSE he is not a part of the community that I associate with… namely openly gay. If he is gay, so be it. It should be on his terms as to when he comes out: not mine, not yours, not Queerty’s, and certainly not his PR agents. It is his life. I guess I also don’t really care because those Twilight movies blow and he was one of the bigger draws to it. I can’t look at the guy without thinking about how I was dragged, against my will, to the first flick! Oh the horror. My sister, on the other hand, loves the guy. She thinks he’s hot. To each their own.
n900mixalot
You know who’s hot? The gay character from Happy Endings.
HOT!!!
Vaan_Lohengrin
god, Taylor is not hot… he’s a child
he has a child voice, and looks like an alpaca
not even worth drooling over…
Stephen
I don’t get the obsession with outing people. It is not your right to claim someone else is gay when he hasn’t yet identified as such. By calling people gay who may be straight, you are promoting the idea that all straight men have to act and look a certain way. Who cares if he is gay? He’ll come out on his own time.
ewe
I don’t even think that person is attractive.
ewe
@Stephen: The concept of a “closet” is what promotes people to act and look a certain way.
ewe
If anyone thinks that admitting your sexual orientation is somehow easier when you are older you are dead wrong. People fare better when they are who they are from the start. Just look at kids today who are out. Do you think they are gonna be obsessing about who they are sexually when they are 40? NO. Gay people who admit they are gay at the same time straight people admit they are straight are on the same playing field and more self empowered then if they spend half a life in pain and denial.
ewe
The larger issue is about finances. Look at someone like Ricky Martin. No one is going to tell me he didn’t know he was gay. He wanted to make as much money as he could then he had kids and announced he is gay so that when his kids are conscious of what other people are talking about the issue of their fathers sexual orientation will not be on the table. It’s always selfish and it should be. This is your one life. If we should fight anything we should be fighting a culture that rewards heterosexuality and scorns homosexuality. The only way i can personally do that is boycott bigots.
ewe
But what the hell do i know. i’m just a bitter old fort with a flat saggy ass.
PLAYS WELL WITH OTHERS
I think he is way hot, doesn’t have the cookie cutter typical hollywood “classic handsome” face which makes him more unique……………
And if you wish to see just how “big” of a star he really is use the Googles and in the images tab input “Taylor Lautner, water bottle, sweats”………..
hudson
@#46 Plays Well With Others- haven’t seen you here in awhile………nice to see you back
the crustybastard
FTFA: will you be asking all of the handsome actors…if I made passes at them as well? I’d love to be there when you ask Sean Penn that same question
Um, DLB considers Sean Penn “handsome”?
Yeah, he wouldn’t be the example that popped into my mind.
ewe
Dear Queerty: Comment No. 45 is someone using my username. It is a first and should be brought to your attention.
ewe
@ewe: your life must be very empty for you to feel the need to comment as me. I am glad you find me so enthralling.
GregR
I suppose he is attractive to some people. Mostly young girls I think, but he does nothing for me. Whenever I look at him, there’s something odd about his face. It looks like he cannot breathe through his nose. I think if he triggers the gaydar, there could be some truth to the rumors. Not every male celebrity triggers the gaydar.
Tony
@evanb: You summed it up the best by far. He is incredibly resistible. And he’s easily out-acted by anyone on the CW.
Lish
Gay or straight I still find him super attractive 🙂
Curtispsf
@ewe: Has someone gone off his meds? This is just a little too schizophrenic for me. Will the real “EWE” please stand up?