We think it’s safe to say Lucas Hedges doesn’t care much for labels.
In a new interview with Vulture, the Lady Bird actor opens up about his sexuality, saying: “I recognize myself as existing on that spectrum. Not totally straight, but also not gay, and not necessarily bisexual.”
He continues, “In the early stages of my life, some of the people I was most infatuated with were my closest male friends. That was the case through high school, and I think I was always aware that while for the most part I was attracted to women.”
The 21-year-old, who was nominated for his first Academy Award for Best Supporting Actor for his work in Manchester By the Sea in 2017, goes on to recall feeling “ashamed” in middle school about existing on a spectrum.
“I felt ashamed that I wasn’t 100 percent [straight], because it was clear that one side of sexuality presents issues, and the other doesn’t as much,” he says.
Hedges will appear in the gay conversion drama Boy Erased, which opens in theaters in November. In it, he plays a gay teenager forced to attend conversion therapy by his religious parents, played by Nicole Kidman and Russell Crowe.
“I recognized that sense of anticipating and waiting for anyone and everyone to be like, ‘There’s something wrong with you,’” Hedges says about the upcoming role. “It’s a story about shame, which felt to me like the governing factor of my life and my childhood.”
In addition to Boy Erased, Hedges is set to make his Broadway debut in The Waverly Gallery later this year.
Related: The trailer for conversion therapy film “Boy Erased” is here and we’re already getting Oscar vibes
barkomatic
So he’s the Q in LGBTQ. No big deal and he doesn’t ever really have to label himself.
Josh447
It’s called being human. Oh no, another label!
dbmcvey
Sometimes it’s better to just not say anything.
ElPillo
Indeed. This reminds me of my dog, to much part of the family to be a pet, but not quite human and too self-suffice to to be a cat. He’s just what he is, an organism that is not a dog,
Kangol
So he’s…queer. Whew, glad that’s established.
Josh447
How do you figure he fits into a disgusting gay bashing word like “queer”.
OzJosh
Anyone who still regards “queer” as gay bashing is proclaiming themselves hopelessly out-of-touch. It’s been a positive term in most enlightened circles since I was first out in the 70s – and I was then living in a total backwater town. There’s no great integrity in being impervious to change.
Josh447
Anyone who thinks the demeaning word “queer” can have a positive connotation is hopelessly out of touch with reality. Fag queer dyke etc, never going to have a majority gay or straight sign off on those references as positive.
MatthewC
You are literally posting on a website that uses the word queer in it’s name. Do you think that this site is in favor of gay bashing?
Josh447
No. The business name Queerty doesn’t carry decades of vile stigma. I’ve never even associated it with the negative crassness that the word queer emits.
There was an article recently on the use of the term fag and its implications. All the commentors felt it was highly demeaning and derogatory and off the table for use. The majority of commentors also viewed the word queer in the same way. I agreed. There’s no way to shake its original gay bashing tone. It is still used that way today add nauseum by haters. That’ll never change. So why push a bolder uphill? It’s draining.
You can’t turn sour milk into sweet whipping cream. Just doesn’t work. Whoever dreamed up trying to change its filthy demeaning etimology into something positive was out to lunch and had zero education in high quality PR. Same with the word cisgender. Sounds sissy. People hate that word. Seems the dreamers of these words and their connotations could very well be anti gay, as it has a negative effect on the gay image. Just try calling a straight guy cisgender. Well actually don’t, I wouldn’t want you to get hurt!
Josh447
PS. Of my straight friends, the one comment they all agree on is, gays need a good PR company bc gay is associated with so many negative images. So true.
Kangol
@Josh447, you’re posting on QUEERTY!
Josh447
@Kongol,
I know, how ironic! The word Queerty has never been a problem, never even considered it as a negative. The two words do not connect for me in context. One is a business name, the other a slam. I get what you are thinking but it doesn’t apply for me. I know, go figah. Read above post.
Is it correct that you are labeling this guy with “queer” as a non stigmatized non judgmental defining of the word “queer” as in he is simply not straight, the end, or? Do you consider the word “queer” benign?Maybe you could give me some insight about this many usage word and how you meant it? I’ve always found you to be quite fair and balanced in your comments.
Kangol
@Josh447, yes, I don’t see “queer” as negative in 2018. It’s a long used and now widely accepted, encompassing term that means “not straight,” but also leaves space for self-identification that isn’t strictly gay, bi, etc. I imagine that’s why Queerty chose the site for its name, in addition to it being pretty catchy. I won’t get into the long gender and sexuality studies discussion about “queerness,” which also goes beyond sexuality, but as OzJosh, Matthew C and others point out, the term is not anti-gay or gay-bashing, it’s affirmative. As in LGBT-Q! 😉
hazy
I’m not sure where Josh447 got edumacated but you are sadly lacking in knowledge of queer history. The word has been reclaimed, whether you acknowledge it or not. Your ignorance of that fact does not make you right but only demonstrates your ignorance. Have you paid no attention to what’s been happening over the last 30 years, starting with Queer Nation in the early 1990s? Read up or get the hell off of Queerty or stop trolling.
Josh447
Kongol,
Right on, thx.
Josh447
Little Miss hazy,
Write me again when you pull in your fangs do your research, and learn how to spell.
queerty02
I hate to be that cynical guy, but if a dick gets hard in the woods with no one around to see it, did it ever really get hard? I mean, does infatuation even mean sexual attraction to him? This seems like ‘the spectrum’ is a very safe way for him to claim artistic integrity, and be praised for the types of roles he’s been doing. But if it really is true, good on him I guess!
henare
so, 100% attention-seeking whore, then?
DarkZephyr
I wouldn’t go that far and sheesh that’s harsh of you dude, but he is already in movies so why do something like this JUST for attention?
Young Timer
So he’s not heterosexual, homosexual, or bisexual.
He also doesn’t appear to be metrosexual.
Judging from the picture, he appears to be unisexual.
He loves himself.
gaimingfoxer
That would be Autosexual.
Thad
Regarding Lucas Hedges’ sexuality: yawn
Regarding Lucas Hedges’ career: wow! He’s doing it all. Can’t wait to see Boy Erased…loved the book and wondering how unlike it is to “Cameron Post.”
DarkZephyr
“We think it’s safe to say Lucas Hedges doesn’t care much for labels.”
Yes yes, because “labels” are icky and imposed by an insensitive society, yadda yadda yadda. Its not because words can be a convenient descriptor that make navigating our social lives and especially romantic lives a helluva lot easier.
inbama
Yep.
Being against labels really means being against words and definitions.
“I am so special that I am beyond language to describe.”
Mozo83
Ha, indeed. I find this new “I am poly/pan/fluid/not gay or str8, etc.” trend of late boils down to people being afraid to say they’re gay.
queerty02
But also being afraid to say they’re straight! Because that would be mean “normal,” just like everyone else, a scoop of vanilla ice cream with no toppings, etc. If you’re an actor, and you present as a cismale, saying you’re “gender/sexually fluid” can give you some special cache.
Mozo83
@queerty02: Yes, for sure. It’s odd to be living in a time where we applaud an openness to different expressions of sexuality, as it were, but still get pissed when a straight guy plays gay. To your point, it’ll be easier for this 21-year-old to play gay in another movie having jettisoned any old school perception of his heterosexuality.
And yes, if he admitted being straight, he’d be getting pilloried for “acting gay” in the movie.
startenout
Hedges: it’s not just his name
Kangol
+1000
rickc1029
what kind of on the fence chicken s$$t is this………………..s$$t, fart or get off the toilet bowl……………you bunch of wusses….oh well ? what ever silly kind of answers……..what has the progress come to where we can’t be bold enough to say ………….grab you balls man, either you are or your not………..dumbass…………….I’ve lived through 60s through now to listen to this crap….get a grip people.
djmcgamester
I feel like this describes a good chuck of the people in the world. I’ve messed around with women long after coming out as gay. So, yeah, it makes me not 100% gay but not bi. Seems like he’s just trying to make headlines.
dash_board1
@djmcgamester, I can only assume you continue to have sex with women because you are sexually attracted to them? Don’t you consider a man who is sexually attracted to men and women to be bisexual?
Donston
dash_board1, you continue to under-rate just how vast and varied the spectrum is and just how many people fit on it, and you remain obsessed with pushing your idea of identity above all else. First, just because someone sexually engages with someone or even gets some sexual enjoyment engaging with them doesn’t mean that they’re sexually attracted to them. And just because someone has sexual attraction towards someone doesn’t mean that they have substantial sexual passion or fulfillment towards that type of person. Hell, there are men who have far more immediate sexual attractions and arousals towards women but still greatly prefer sexual attention and romantic affection from men, as well as the other way around. Everyone has nuances and plenty of people are full of contradictions.
More people are becoming uncomfortable embracing “bi” unless they have distinct and substantial romantic and sexual interest and fulfillment towards men and women. And more people don’t see “gay” as corresponding with “completely homosexual”. It’s not a big deal dashy. This is how it’s always been up until maybe a decade ago. People started becoming more obsessed with using science to “prove” orientation due to religious naysayers, more obsessed with definitive definitons of things, and more people started using identity to distinguish themselves from others or create sociological barriers. Things are now simply going back to how they’ve always been, where people are looking for identities that perfectly suit their romantic, sexual and emotional elements and what they want. And there’s less dependence on “labels” and more of a desire to explain the aspects of who you are.
As far as Lucas “trying to make a headline”, he’s starring in a movie about a gay kid who suffers through conversion therapy. That’s probably why this topic was brought up.
dash_board1
@Donston, a few things:
1 – I addresed my question to @djmcgamester because I was confused by his statement and was hoping to gain some insight from him.
2 – I do find your assertion that I’m ‘pushing your idea of identity above all else’ to be rather ironic because I’ve rarely come across someone as interested in the specifics of identity as yourself. You continually insist that people have to be incredibly specific about the nature of their sexuality. But to what end? If someone says they’re bisexual no one really cares about the particulars or nuances of their preferences, unless they are in a relationship with them.
3 – You’ve made statements like 50% of gay men are actually bisexual and that more and more people don’t see “gay” as corresponding with “completely homosexual”. Is this just anecdotal based on your personal experience? Where are you getting these figures from?
4 – I’m not sure if you are aware but you repeat a lot of the same talking points over and over using didactic lecturing. You also come off as wanting to be THE authority on sexual orientation matters. It can come off as arrogant and have the effect of stifling discourse. I’m assuming this is unintentional.
5 – You and I have differing views on sexual orientation. I view sexual orientation on a spectrum of sexual attraction, with homosexuality and heterosexuality on the two polar ends and bisexuality as the spectrum between the two. Obviously where an individual lies on the bisexual spectrum will differ from person to person, but they are all still bisexual. As I mentioned earlier, I don’t think the particulars or nuances of their preferences is relevant unless someone is getting into a relationship with them. You seem to think differently but we can respectfully agree to disagree.
Donston
Well, actually a lot of people assume certain things when someone (particularly a guy) comes out as “bi”. You see it all the time on social media, where both women and men, “gays”, “straights”, “queers”, etc. try to “claim” them, many assume that they have substantial romantic and sexual interests in men and women or people assume that they’re hetero or homo-leaning with only being given vague details. For some people “bi” is too close to heteronormalcy or hetero worship for them to embrace. For others it’s too close to “gay”. And just how into someone beyond one gender do you have to be to consider yourself “bi”- that’s always a debate. Some people take gay, straight, bi, pan, etc. as meaning very specific stuff. For others they can each be fairly ambiguous and may each represent their own spectrum. For some “gay” means homosexual and “straight” means heterosexual. For others that’s not always the case. “Queer” was designed to be vague and all-emcompassing, though in the US at least, people who are interested in persistently indulging kinky sex with multiple genders seem to be taking “queer” from everyone else. Some see orientation as only having to do with sexual attractions, sexual passions and/or sexual behaviors. For others it’s more about romantic fulfillment and relationship contentment/ambitions. And for some it’s some combination of those things.
As far as the at least 50% of gay-identifying people are not completely and inherent homo thing, it’s more of a life experience thing. But there have been a couple of studies that support that perspective. Most of the gay-identifying men I’ve met have talked about hetero or trans hook-ups, attractions or relationships. Furthermore, there has been no scientific study that has been able to determine orientation. Even the Kinsey studies were greatly biased and were mostly questionaires, not really scientific at all. While more legitimately science-based experiments have only been able to determine some type of immediate arousal someone has at that time, which doesn’t tell you all that much. And it certainly can’t tell you more nuanced things like sexual desire, sexual enjoyment, sexual fulfillment, romantic passions, emotional contentment, etc.
All this different stuff has reached a point of complete subjectivity, convolution and individualism. So, why do we continue placing so much weight on identity? Only when I sense someone is trying to manipulate, trying to indulge hetero supremacy or is exuding gay shame do I care anymore. And that’s a pretty big turnaround from where I was on this subject about a year ago. Everybody is different and is different for different reasons. I know that may be difficult for some to accept, but it’s reality. The quicker most people can understand and be okay with that the easier it’ll be for everyone.
Donston
Well, perhaps most people fit on the spectrum in some way or another. We do need to get to the point where people can admit that they have some romantic and/or sexual feelings, instincts, passions, pleasures beyond one gender but also be okay with being direct that they have distinct romantic/sexual/relationship preferences. Too many homo or trans leaning dudes stay too desperate to hold on to a sense of heteronormalcy or continue to show gay shame throughout their lives. While too many hetero-leaning dudes are scared of being seen as anything non-hetero or are themselves desperate to stay attached to “queerness”. No matter identity or lifestyle, perhaps most people are not completely, 100% inherently conventionally hetero or homo or close to 50-50 bi/pan romantically and sexually. We need to start acting like that and being real about that so it’s no longer a big deal and people aren’t out here manipulating or hurting each other and themselves.
Josh447
You keep saying “we need we need”, well, no, we don’t. You sound like a broken record full of mountains of details that noone here particularly cares about. (Read #4 of dash_board1 comment above serveral times). It’s obvious that you are either a plant, a severe attention whore, mentally off balance or all three. Irregardless, please consider not repeating all your garb as nauseam.
Maybe another site that caters to your message may work better for you.
Donston
The fact that there seems to be an immediate resentment towards people who refuse to “label” themselves, towards people who seem interested in describing themselves beyond identity and cliches, and towards people who refuse to define their identity the way others define theirs does show that there are quite a few cracks in the system. And it’s apparent that even among “queer people” there’s a lot of ignorance and discomfort concerning orientation and general sense of self.
My posts in this thread are completely on topic. You however almost never have any real insight or perspective at all. I’d rather over-explain and sometimes be redundant than not really have an imput at all and just come off generally shallow like yourself. You’ve also said some fairly hateful things and when called out about it you pretend you didn’t say it or that it’s no big deal. Quite a few people have told me that they appreciate my presence on this site. But they are people who have stopped posting here or very sporadically posts here. So, I do agree that it is probably time for me to move on from this site.
Sam6969
Donston,
Actually, I have noticed the change you mention in the way you present things. You are still quite judgmental about people with shame issues, but overall your insights about some of the subtleties of sexual orientations in the 7 dimensions as defined by F. Klein (see Fritz Klein Grid on wiki) —and others you put forward— are rather well put to light. (Though you might define each of them more specifically in details for all of us to understand: what is the difference between sexual fulfillment and sexual passion, for instance? Etc.)
Also I understand that if everyone (celebrities first I suppose) could talk about the nuances of their attractions, rather than just talk about labels, everyone would see the wide variety of possibilities reflected in others more clearly and maybe their own specific potential as well. When we are enclosed in categories, we do not see outside the box (we may smother sparkles subconsciously and shut doors), and we do not see our own full potential. If straight men (and conversely gay men) realize that many of them have some degree (in whatever dimensions) of —buried or not— same-sex attraction, sexually or romantically, then we all may end up stopping to enclose ourselves rigidly in binary categories. It is a virtuous circle in collective awareness; and as you suggested, it will be easier for gay-dominant and gay-leaning people to accept themselves and be accepted as they are. If straight people can realize they can connect to us to some degree, then it will be a great social and societal improvement.
It is a theory, but it is an interesting one to develop and maybe push forward.
So, your posts can have great value and I appreciate them better now, but they still need to be improved 😉
Virpilosus
Ummm, so it seems this individual is sexually attracted to certain other individuals… Wow… Who the F cares?
Hussain-TheCanadian
(Hussain giggles everytime he hears the word queer………………………..passes the joint along)
mz.sam
Another OMNISEXUAL excuse. Fake denial…Gurl, bye!
frankcar1965
I’m on the spectrum too, I just don’t know what that spectrum is yet.
Sam6969
There is a wide range of multi-dimensional nuances behind the bisexual label (aside from the more restricted definition of ‘50/50’). To better understand yourself in that department you may start by searching and reading “Kinsey Scale” and “Klein Sexual Orientation Grid” on wiki. Both do not describe all the possibilities, but it is a start. The only Klein sexual orientation grid-inspired quiz I find interesting on the net is the Psychomedia one (but it’s in French): http://www.psychomedia.qc.ca/tests/klein
Sam6969
There is a wide range of multi-dimensional nuances behind the bisexual label (aside from the more restricted definition of ‘50/50’). To better understand yourself in that department you may start by searching and reading “Kinsey Scale” and “Klein Sexual Orientation Grid” on wiki. Both do not describe all the possibilities, but it is a start. The only Klein sexual orientation grid-inspired quiz I find interesting on the net is the Psychomedia one (but it’s in French): www . psychomedia.qc.ca / tests / klein (remove the blanks)
ShowMeGuy
He is unique and special……..
………..just like everyone else.
Ashke113
Oh look yet just one more unique unlike anyone else wanting to not be labeled but wants to be recognized look at me I’m a special little snowflake and no one else is like me luttle queerling who wants to spread his wings and be cock of the walk. But is actually exactly like the last 600 guys just like him……and the thirsty desperate homos are all wanting to bed him or cheer his uniqueness.
DCguy
Gee, one more person afraid to make a declarative statement and all of the accounts coming in to trumpet for the closet, but hiding it behind the term “No labels”.
Yawn. So he isn’t gay or straight, but refuses to call himself Bi. So I guess just more bi-erasure.