It used to be the norm for straight actors to take all the queer roles. Historically, this was largely in part to the dearth of out actors due to the extreme homophobia in Hollywood and society in general.
And despite the stigma that often came with being a real-life queer, being gay for pay on-screen often led to major accolades and Oscar gold. This has been the case for a bevy of straight actors like Tom Hanks, Sean Penn, Nicole Kidman, Cate Blanchett, William Hurt, Mahershala Ali, Rami Malek and Jared Leto, among others. Other times the performances were not that fabulous.
In the last decade, more and more LGBTQ+ roles have gone to actual LGBTQ+ actors to resounding success.
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This past year alone we saw out stars like Colman Domingo (Rustin), Jodie Foster (Nyad), Andrew Scott (All Of Us Strangers), Matt Bomer and Jonathan Bailey (Fellow Travelers) get recognition with acting nods for playing queer characters in movies and shows.
Perhaps as a true sign of progress, many queer actors continue to be cast in straight roles long after coming out dispelling the misnomer that audiences would reject them in these parts once knowing their truth. Domingo in The Color Purple, Bailey in Bridgerton and Kristen Stewart in Spencer are just a few recent examples.
Recently, Eric McCormack, who received an Emmy for playing gay for 11 seasons on Will & Grace, joined the chorus of thespians defending heteros taking on queer roles.
“I didn’t become an actor so that I could play an actor,” McCormack said on Good Morning Britain. “There’s no part I’ve ever played where I wasn’t playing something I’m not. It’s part of the gig”
He continued: “If gay actors weren’t allowed to play straight actors, Broadway would be over. So this is what we do.I came from the theater, and every one of my best friends was a gay man. So I think I took their spirit and their message in what was otherwise just a sitcom and represented, I hope.”
In the past, other actors like Stanley Tucci, Benedict Cumberbatch, Paul Mescal (who played gay in All of Us Strangers), and even Andrew Scott have defended straight actors being allowed to take on queer roles.
One person who is not on board with non-queers playing queer is Queer As Folk creator Russell T. Davies.
The screenwriter and producer – who also created It’s A Sin and is a showrunner on Doctor Who – spoke to the nuance and lived experience that comes with portraying a queer character authentically.
“I’m not being woke about this… but I feel strongly that if I cast someone in a story, I am casting them to act as a lover, or an enemy, or someone on drugs or a criminal or a saint… they are not there to ‘act gay’ because ‘acting gay’ is a bunch of codes for a performance,” Davies told the Radio Times in 2021. “It’s about authenticity.”
He added: “You wouldn’t cast someone able-bodied and put them in a wheelchair, you wouldn’t black someone up. Authenticity is leading us to joyous places.”
So, what do you think? Have we evolved to a place where any actor (queer or straight) should be allowed to take on a role regardless of their sexual orientation? Or should queer roles be left solely to individuals within the LGBTQ+ community? Sound off in the comments below….
ShaverC
Yes it is OK. Why is this even a discussion. If only gay people could play gay characters, then gay actors can’t play straight characters.
abfab
Your acting sucks.
Love321
but that’s not what happens, and you know that. Straight people play both gay and straight characters, and gay actors are rarely represented in leading film roles.
Love321
but that’s not what happens. Straight people play both gay and straight characters, and gay actors are rarely represented in leading film roles.
mikhailmaui
Exactly. Acting is acting. Matt Bomer would lose out on most of his acting gigs if gays could only play gay and straights could only play straight. Such foolishness. That said, we also have to ensure that gay and lesbians do not lose out on roles simply because of their sexuality.
Love321
mikhailmaui- name a leading film acting gig where Matt Bomer played a straight character? This is the delusion people have. Trying to make the suggestion gay people wouldn’t play straight characters, but straight actors have been playing both gay and straight characters while gays have been limited to a few TV roles.
GlobeTrotter
For the love of god, I can’t believe we still have to be having this discussion in 2024! It’s called ACTING, it’s what ACTORS do, play a character that they’re not. If you’re only playing yourself, then that’s not art and that’s not acting. Acting requires you to step out of your comfort zone and take on another person’s life story completely alien to your own. That said, the job should go to the individual BEST ABLE to portray the role as imagined by the writer(s) and director. End of discussion!
Furthermore, how would a director even know if the person auditioning for a role is gay or straight? I believe it violates at least 100 federal laws to even ask the question, not to mention the avalanche of lawsuits that are sure to follow.
“You wouldn’t cast someone able-bodied and put them in a wheelchair, you wouldn’t black someone up. Authenticity is leading us to joyous places.”
If this screenwriter/producer can’t tell the difference between sexuality and physical attributes, then he has no business in show business.
Justice
Absolutely correct! It’s an insane conversation and also a dangerous one. It will backfire on the LGBTQ community of actors. Perhaps some day sexual identity will not be an issue, but for now we must consciously make sure it isn’t one.
ZzBomb
Yeah can we put this to rest already? It’s ok for gay actors to play straight and vice versa. Really, we got bigger fish on our plate to deal with than this. Can we just be happy for our community when we have representation truly exhibited or allies playing their roles well enough to convince you they could be? There’s enough hate going around already, no need to foment this non-issue any more.
abfab
Yes Zz and Globe, yes yes yes! But AI does not give a flying f uck about fomenting. It foments. That’s what it does. Queerty doesn’t have tiny litttle Gay Elves in a sweatshop churning out these tired discussions. Give the few humans who drive this car a bit more credit.
The real issue here are how commenters on said subject regurgitate the same exact responces every time.
abfab
ps………..unless Johnny Lopez begs to differ.
Donston
Any time someone starts sentences with “we need to be thankful…” it instantly becomes apparent that you’re likely someone who embraces pandering, “straight/“straight-ish” worship, second class citizenship and probably contend with internalized phobias and gay resentments.
Just so you know.
ZzBomb
Donston, anyone here who has been here long enough would know I’m not one to pander to anything or anyone. I simply select and choose my battles. This is not the issue you want to make the hill you die on.
You have a nice day now.
Donston
Why do y’all continue to post about this topic and yet have no real opinion about it?
We are thankfully past the point where producers/execs purposely look for only “straight presenting” and “gender normal” actors in queer roles. While it was never gonna be practical to only hire “queer” actors for “queer” roles. Identity is too random and can have fluidity. You’re low-key forcing people to be out in order to have a chance at certain roles. And everyone has their own thing going on as far as the gender, sexual, affection, romantic, emotion, commitment spectrum.
However, there are still biases. Andrew Scott was always gonna miss the Oscar nod, because he’s overtly queer and All Of Us Strangers isn’t a “straight appeasing” movie and isn’t a typical “queer story”. And the industry still has issues with internalized phobias, closet pressures, male femininity, “straight”/“straight-ish” worship, and a glass ceiling for unapologetic queer male actors. Eric McCormick’s example missed the point while he was trying to make a point. The main reason those actors are always doing Broadway is because the Hollywood gigs are few and far between for them. But Hollywood is always gonna be Hollywood. It’s like looking at the porn industry to offer “healthy” representation of sexuality and relationships. There was always gonna be biases, hypocrisies and “problematic” patterns.
GlobeTrotter
With respect, I think YOU are the one missing the point. Acting is about portraying a character that you’re not – there are gay characters, straight characters, effeminate gay characters, butch lesbian characters, etc. Your job as the actor is to portray the character as written by the writer to the satisfaction of the director. No one cares who you are or what you are, the only important question is, can you play the character as written? I have some stage experience from college where we had one or two guest directors from Broadway, so I remember what it’s like to be required to play something you’re not. If the character’s a flamboyant gay man, then that’s exactly what you have to play – at this point no one gives a flying fudge about your own sexuality, whether you’re straight presenting, gay presenting, whether you’re “gender normal”, fluid and all that crap. It’s a job and it’s an artform. Either you have the skills to pull it off, or you don’t. That’s why actors attend classes, take coaching lessons, do crazy exercises, etc., all in an effort to more convincingly portray a character that’s completely alien to their nature. When I remember back in the day, most of the guys I knew in theater where gay and they played straight characters so convincingly you’d have had no idea they were gay in real life. That’s art. That’s the whole point of acting!
Donston
I’m talking about the nuances and politics of identity, privilege, bias, and glass ceilings. There was nothing in my post discussing the art form of acting. If you’re gonna respond with a melodramatic rant, at least make it have anything to do the post you’re responding to.
monty clift
“gender normal”
I prefer gender normalcy in gay acting, as it is an accurate representation of gay people. Gay men aren’t women, and lesbians aren’t men.
Love321
GlobeTrotter- the problem is that the only time LGBTQ people are being represented is when straight actors are being represented. If it was truly about acting, the best person for the job, experience, and equality, it would be more GAY people playing straight characters since LGBTQ have many years of experience ACTING as something they’re not before coming out the closet. All you’re doing is justifying the status quo which excludes LGBTQ actors in leading roles regardless of the sexual orientation of the character.
GlobeTrotter
@Love321: “If it was truly about acting, the best person for the job, experience, and equality, it would be more GAY people playing straight characters…”
But that’s the thing isn’t it, 99% of the the times the audience does NOT know the sexuality of an actor. I think when most people think of actors, they’re thinking of famous Hollywood actors. That’s a mistake. 99% of all actors are NOT acting in Hollywood, and 99% of all actors are NOT on TV. Most actors are busy doing local theater productions, local plays, etc., if you’re lucky you might get a job in a big venue like NY, but 99% of most actors spend their entire lives working and never get a TV or Broadway gig. I think these are the humble actors that often get overlooked in favor of the big names we see on the screen. And a great deal of these regular actors ARE IN FACT gay. In fact, it’s such a cliche or expectation, that directors DON’T CARE about your sexuality or your personal life. At auditions, directors care how you look and how convincingly you portray a character. You could be the most flaming moe off-stage in real life, if you best convincingly portray the wife-beating womanizer in the play, then that’s what they’ll pay you to do. Gay men have been the backbone in the acting industry for well over a hundred years now, and most gay actors do NOT reveal their sexuality. So I’m not sure how you or anyone else purports to know that there aren’t more gay people playing straight roles. Trust me, there are, you just don’t know about it because unlike in Hollywood, most actors don’t go around publicizing their sexuality.
Love321
GlobeTrotter- ” I think these are the humble actors that often get overlooked in favor of the big names we see on the screen. And a great deal of these regular actors ARE IN FACT gay.”
This is great, but the big names are the people who can reach DIVERSE, and mainstream audiences. There’s not alot of people who know Jonathan Groff compared to Leonardo Dicaprio.
Lastly you mentioned, “Trust me, there are, you just don’t know about it because unlike in Hollywood, most actors don’t go around publicizing their sexuality.”
This is a perfect example of you defending gay actors to remain closeted and/or prevent them from being openly gay. Yes, we are well aware that in order for actors to achieve they have to keep their sexuality hidden to not offend homophobic audiences. But this is not 1950 anymore. In 2024, gay people can disclose their sexual orientation, be open with their sexual orientation, and do not have to follow your suggestion of “not publicizing their sexuality” in order to be a successful actor.
Love321
GlobeTrotter- ” I think these are the humble actors that often get overlooked in favor of the big names we see on the screen. And a great deal of these regular actors ARE IN FACT gay.”
This is great, but the big names are the people who can reach DIVERSE, and mainstream audiences. There’s not alot of people who know Jonathan Groff compared to Leonardo Dicaprio.
“Trust me, there are, you just don’t know about it because unlike in Hollywood, most actors don’t go around publicizing their sexuality.”
This is a perfect example of defending gay actors to remain closeted and/or prevent them from being openly gay. Yes, we are well aware that in order for actors to achieve they have to keep their sexuality hidden to not offend homophobic audiences. But this is not 1950 anymore. In 2024, gay people can disclose their sexual orientation, be open with their sexual orientation, and do not have to follow the suggestion of “not publicizing their sexuality” in order to be a successful actor.
monty clift
I think it’s more of an issue when actors who play gay or bi roles are still homophobic afterwards. Bette Midler, Matt Damon, Jeremy Irons, Chris Pratt, Ellen Page, Tom Hardy, etc. You’d think they would have learned something from that experience, but apparently not.
Bosch
Tom Hardy is openly bisexual, and Ellen Page is now Elliot Page… That’s not really examples of straight people playing gay roles.
And I’m 100% sure Ben Affleck has boinked Matt Damon.
But Bette Milder, was that her tweet about Trump blowing Putin, or did she do more?
LumpyPillows
While I agree with your point, I find you list to be confusing.
Love321
Bosch- do you have proof Tom Hardy came out as bisexual?? Tom made a statement that he’s slept with man because he’s an actor implying he only did it for his job. Other than that, when did he mention he’s turned on by men, and that he’s bisexual?
monty clift
@Bosch, Hardy never came out as bisexual. Ever since he hit big in Hollywood, he’s been trying to downplay and erase his same-sex past. When he was playing the Kray twins, Reginald and bisexual Ronald Kray, he got all huffy during an interview when his sexuality was brought up. Why even play a bisexual man if you can’t handle those kinds of questions?
Page played lesbian roles prior to her new identity; she always had issues with being lesbian, but now she’s ramped up that self-hatred and homophobia by pretending she’s a man.
Bette Midler likes gays but doesn’t like them having rights. Her past views on gay marriage don’t seem to have changed all that much. Right after the ban on abortion, she was quick to tweet her smug remarks on gay marriage, saying something to the effect of “They’re coming for you next.”
Love321
The problem is that openly gay actors are rarely represented in leading film roles especially award winning films. Last year it was Colman Domingo, and that’s it. However, there’s an overrepresentation of straight actors playing gay characters.
Donston
People try to simplify nuanced problems and sociology, because they’re either not capable having those types of conversations or because they want to protect their argument. Discussions of identity, privilege, bias, the gender, sexual, romantic, emotion, commitment spectrum will never be as basic of folks want it to be.
Very few people in recent years have flat-out said “only queer-presenting actors should play ‘queer”. The discussion has moved on to talking about the limitations put on opportunities for unabashed queer actors, “queer representation” being filtered through a “straight” prism and designed for “straight people” consumption, the industry’s bias against femme males, and how so many “queers” in Hollywood are still driven by internalized phobias and desire for hetero validation. But that’s a more complicated discussion than anything going on here.
Lastly, let me reiterate, starting any sentence with “we need to be grateful…” is a tell-tale sign that you have a lot of issues with your own queerness, that you see yourself as below others and that you are too often driven by validation from others.
Archie
We can’t even get the straights out of gay porn. Can’t keep them out of gay bars either. And now, 30% of the (straight) youngsters identify as gay.
The straights are culturally appropriating the gays!
Kangol2
I thought it was 30% of Gen Z women identify as “queer” and 30% of Gen Z in general identify as “LGBTQIA+” or did I miss a new survey?
monty clift
They think it gives them a free pass to be homophobic towards gay people, and they like the benefits that come with pretending to be gay without actually being gay. A lot of those straight/bi porn performers are homophobes as well. I don’t know why any self-respecting gay man would waste their money and time on that trash anyway. On the upside, you can always spot a pseudo-homosexual.
Rugby8
Of course it’s ok!
Why do you keep bringing this up? You’re as bad a the Network news stations — David Muir can’t just “tell” you about some tragedy — then the “go live” to some reporter to Tell You The Same Thing. Then, often, they’ll have some a-s they deem as an “expert” tell you Again.
Let’s make Sure We Upset People!
Why do you guys keep taking about this baloney?
It’s fine.
Its good.
Be Quiet.
…….is it really your goal to just get people “riled up”?
Stop
Please
dmarcus
In short, yes straight actors can play gay or bi. The problem is that more LGBTQ actors should get the same recognition and opportunity as straight actors. That’s the real issue. Having a few examples of LGBTQ actors being nominated for awards for playing queer roles in the past 3 years does not make up for the 90 years and hundreds of straight actors playing gay to praise and awards. There were queer actors in All of Us Strangers; Red, White, & Royal Blue; and Saltburn but who got the most attention and career boost? Straight actors. So there is still an imbalance of casting opportunities and promotion for queer ppl. And still most of LGBTQ lead roles are still being cast with straight actors. All I’m asking is more of queer ppl in the leads with the studios backing them up.
Let’s not pretend being LGBTQ has been heavily politicized in the past few years. With many brands withdrawing from sponsoring LGBTQ ppl. It’s weird seeing straight actors play LGBTQ and make bank acting gay while overlooking or minimizing our struggles in order to boost their public image and career. We see that a lot with g4p corn actors and now we are seeing it with mainstream actors. At the end of the day they get to go home and be straight, not having the experience or weight of an actual queer person. Since now many apps are shadow banning and taking down queer ppl social media for just being LGBTQ, we have to acknowledge the imbalance of actual queer voices in the media. Because the last thing I want to hear is straight actors talking about how raunchy or “very gay” their sex scene or role was when 1) they never had gay sex or gay relationship and 2) real LGBTQ gets ridiculed or silenced for having gay experiences.
still_onthemark
At least we’ve got past the “so brave” era.
FreddieW
“You wouldn’t cast someone able-bodied and put them in a wheelchair,”
Somebody please sit this guy in front of a TV and make him watch one of the prominent gay actors of yesterday play “Ironside”.
Love321
FreddieW- and Burr remained closeted to his death. So, all your example proves is gay people can be prominent actors if they remain closeted.
inbama
Well, that is the great irony missing in this conversation.
While success came with a terrible personal cost, gay actors did much better before liberation. Rock Hudson, Richard Chamberlain, Montgomery Clift, Katherine Hepburn, Barbara Stanwyck – to name a few. Yes, LGB actors are forging respectable careers today, but they were household names in the days of the closet.
FreddieW
Love321,
Raymond Burr was known to everyone in America;
he had plenty of money with which he bought an island in the Pacific; and he wasn’t closeted to his close friends. What a tragedy!
FreddieW
@inbama
Was it Rupert Everett who said coming out ruined his career?
LumpyPillows
Rupert said that, yes. Different time. He was also a bit delusional as to his skill, and his attacking the hand that fed him did not help.
FreddieW
Different time, but the times haven’t changed that much. In some ways, they’re worse for coming out than the 90’s, if you want wide appeal.
Love321
FreddieW- Burr was closeted to audiences, the viewing public, and majority of people who knew him. While Burr was living, people knew Burr was an actor, but did not know he was gay. If they knew he was gay, he wouldn’t have had the opportunities he did like starring in Ironside, just like many openly gay actors still don’t have the same opportunities compared to their straight counterparts…
inbama
Everett is a fine actor (he’s magnificent as post-imprisoned Oscar Wilde in “The Happy prince”), but his early career had to do with his being exotically attractive. That led him to expect a career as a leading man. But as he got older, it seems his forehead somehow continued growing, and he became less photogenic.
For the reverse situation, take Henry Cavill. Started life as a chubby baby-faced teen, good-looking enough as superman, but now in middle age absolutely striking.
Bosch
Yes. Straight people can play gay roles. Gay people can play straight roles. Black girls can play mermaids. Transwomen can play Barbies. Brits can play Americans. Idiots can play scientists.
Changes don’t happen overnight, and compared to the rest of the US, television and film have generally been moving in the right direction.
Too slow for some, understandable. But we need to traverse the land, not the map.
The one thing that does upset me is how we keep pretending there are straight people in Hollywood. We all know how people get roles.
Jim
Should straight actors play gay characters?
Should gay actors play straight characters ?
Jim
The answer to the question is it okay for straight actors to play gay is,
Mahershala Ali
Kangol2
Mahershala Ali is about as straight as you can get, he can act his behind off and inhabit whichever character he plays, whatever their sexuality, and he burns up the screen with sexiness in role after role, especially as Remy on House of Cards!
LumpyPillows
Who are you to judge someone’s sexuality? Aren’t you the same crew who will insist sexuality and gender are fluid? I’ve always known many of you do not think much and just type whatever pops into your dizzy heads. You leap to a side or a conclusion and demand to be heard, without listening. A cacophony of imbeciles.
It’s acting, honey, just a temporary job, not requiring long-term commitment to cock sucking.
There was a problem with blackballing gay actors. That was a real problem. Different from the current situation.
LegionKeign
This is the dumbest thing I’ve ever heard.
Gay folks have been playing straight roles since acting first started.
Men had to play the female roles because women weren’t allowed to act.
This is foolishness.
Whoever is the best ACTOR should get the role. PERIOD.
Fahd
Has something to do with how comfortable (good?) an actor is too. I was just watching the new Netflix series Iron Reign where Jaime Lorente plays the mob boss son-in-law who is on the DL, and I would say I think he’s a good actor, but his ability to convey that aspect of the character is wanting — he seems like a straight man for whom it is a really really big deal/challenge just to kiss another man on the lips. So awkward and devoid of feeling that he’s completely unbelieveable in that aspect of his character. Maybe if they had an intimacy coach or something but otherwise no.
For now, casting directors should give gay actors first dibs on any gay roles, just because there is no other way that gay actors can break through in sufficient numbers to overcome the tokenism. Yes, affirmative action in casting gay actors…there I’ve said it.
RIGay
It comes down to the talent. I have NO problem with anyone with any talent being cast in any role regardless of the underlying orientation of the character. Whatever! But when I look at how, several seasons ago, the producers of “Star Trek: Discovery” made a MASSIVE promotion of bringing in “Non-binary Actors” for roles starting in the 3rd season. For months we got the promotions about how diverse the actors were for the diverse characters they were to portray! Oh my! This is marvelous!
Then the season’s film hit the screens and we were left with the likes of Blu del Barrio and Ian Alexander who have ZERO screen presence or aptitude for the craft. Hint: THEY CAN’T ACT. Absolutely unwatchable. “BUT THEY ARE NON-BINARY!” Any… ANY of the THOUSANDS of actors out there could have done a Hell of a lot better job with those roles. And no, I am not being homo-whatever; for contrast, just watch “Star Trek: Strange New Worlds” episode “The Serene Squall” with Jesse James Keitel who just ROCKS in the lead as the diabolical baddie! PERFECT ACTOR cast for a PERFECT ROLE.
Love321
RIGay- And there’s many over-rated, straight, white mediocre actors who do NOT HAVE TALENT and no one batts an eye. Matt Danon, George Clooney, Scott Baio, Clint Eastwood are a few examples.
Love321
RIGay- And there’s many over-rated, straight, cisgender, mediocre actors who do NOT HAVE TALENT and no one batts an eye. Matt Damon, George Clooney, Scott Baio, and Clint Eastwood are a few examples.
Love321
Straight actors can play gay characters, but the problem is gay actors do not have the same opportunities to play straight characters especially in leading film roles. I can mention many examples of straight actors playing gay leading film roles AND getting awarded for it, but there’s few examples of gay actors playing straight leading film roles AND getting awarded for it.
AmanInVan
It’s a ridiculous question to begin with. This idea gets so farfetched: A Korean actor can’t play a Japanese character, or any other Asian character. Why not? White actors portray characters from everywhere white people exist. A UK man plays a German man! Horrors!!
Colorful Kent
I want my gay characters to be authentically played by queer actors. I want my porn to be authentic also. I want my gay love songs to be sung by gay singers. I want gay ads to use gay models. I love my community. Gay men are just hotter.
Jon in Canada
In the year 2024, is it still OK for straight actors to play gay?
YES, now can we please address real issues like conservatives trying erase our existence.
Chaucer
Davies is being small-minded. Actors are actors. They act. Sexual orientation is not something obvious to anyone, and should not be the determinant of who gets which role. Plus, it would be quite limiting if queer actors were not allowed to play straight roles. It’s just silly.