If you made a New Year’s resolution to be more assertive and not be afraid to ask for what you want, let Mason Gooding be your inspiration as we dive into 2024.
Over the holiday, the hunky Scream and Booksmart star clearly took some down time to catch up on his reading list, which notably including the celebrated queer mythological romance, The Song Of Achilles.
“Sorry I’m late to the party, but glad I could make it at all,” Gooding said of the 2011 novel, posting a selfie with the book in hand on Twitter X to share his review (“it’s really very good”).
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Now, why is this news to us, you may ask? It’s not like the actor’s starting a book club, and we’re not necessarily making headlines out of every celebrity’s GoodReads account. But it’s this book in particular—and Gooding’s post pointedly letting Miller know he’s a fan—that has us foaming at the mouth with excitement.
For those unfamiliar, The Song Of Achilles is author Madeline Miller’s New York Times Best Selling novel set during the Greek Heroic Age, following the romance of legendary heroes Patroclus and Achilles against the backdrop of the years-long Trojan War.
Achilles, of course, is a well-known figure of Greek mythology—he’s why we have the term “Achilles’ heel”—and was famously played by Brad Pitt in the 2004 epic, Troy, a role responsible for many a sexual awakening. He and Patroclus both factor into Homer’s Iliad, where they are described as childhood friends, but for her novel, Miller drew upon plenty of other writing from the era to tell their story, which many believed to be a romantic one.
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The book was released in 2011 to critical acclaim, but found a second life an entire decade later when it became a major favorite of “BookTok,” with readers of all ages praising unabashed exploration of gay love—and its ability to tell an LGBTQ+ story that wasn’t about the struggle of being queer.
Given the novel’s exploding popularity and the recent success of Red, White & Royal Blue—another page-to-screen queer romance—one can imagine there have at least been meetings about turning The Song Of Achilles into a movie. It’s got action, adventure, love, lust, and an epic scope baked right in; wouldn’t a filmed version just make sense?
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Which brings us back to Gooding. Obviously one of the first questions one would ask about a potential Song Of Achilles movie is, “But who would play our heroes?” And it seems he’s already throwing his hat in the ring.
Like, let’s be real: The guy doesn’t tweet all that much. The fact that he decided to post this—and directly tag the author—feels very intentional (and shameless) in a way that we are absolutely here for.
And, honestly, wouldn’t he be perfect for either Patroclus or Achilles? Look at him! The man is built like a Greek god already.
While he isn’t gay (or, at least, he’s currently in a relationship with model and artist Amenah Soares), Gooding has a track record of queer-friendly roles like Love, Victor and has proven himself to be a total ally, including a tweet a few months back where he defended the queer romance options in the popular video game Starfield, claiming he chose “all the gay options” while playing.
But we don’t need to explain it to you—who wouldn’t want to see this actor rocking some muscle-bearing Grecian armor and pining after his longtime male bestie?
Gay Twitter X™ agrees, and many of them seem to have caught on to the fact that Gooding wants the role bad. Here are just a few of our favorite reactions to his Song Of Achilles book review/blatant pitch to get cast:
hottest tweet I’ve ever seen let’s go on a date
— Dan (@dannah__montana) December 28, 2023
Just in time to be cast as Achilles 🥰
— bussy summers (@Conortroversial) December 28, 2023
But the question remains: Say Gooding did get cast as Patroclus in a hypothetical The Song Of Achilles adaptation, then who should play his Achilles? We’d like to nominate out Fire Island and Glamorous star Zane Phillips, who’s already expressed interest in playing Hercules—another muscle-clad hero of Greek myth—so why not Achilles?
Sound off on who you’d like to see go Greek in the comments!
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DarkZephyr
Good article, but I do wish you folks wouldn’t refer to simply acting in a film as “gay for pay”.
Fenwick22
Exactly!
nm4047
pretty much all it is.
Love321
for whatever reason whenever gay people are represented it’s because it’s straight people portraying them. It’s a “straight” savior complex. Not a single openly gay leading film actor, just straight people playing us.
Rugby8
Agree Completely!!!
Kangol2
OK, I’ll take the bait since you’re writing about a Black/mixed-race actor, meaning there’ll probably be few replies, but Mason Gooding playing a gay/bi/queer role is NOT “gay for pay”, Queerty.
Why does this site keep using this term in this way. He’s an ACTOR. Actors can play all kinds of roles, crossing gender and sexuality/sexual orientation. That’s like saying that Luke Evans, when he plays straight characters, is “straight for pay.”
“Gay-for-pay” refers to self-described “straight”/”hetero” men who have sex with other men, FOR PAY, though they consider themselves straight/hetero. It’s a reductive way of thinking about sexuality, especially in 2024, but that’s what the term refers to, not actors playing roles involving a sexual orientation different than their own.
Rugby8
Really well said!!!
ZzBomb
It would be cool to see a film remaking of Troy but this time Achilles and Patroclus are gay lovers but it’s not a thing anyone cared about. I bought this book for my husband for Christmas, I might just crack it open now too.
bachy
Those images under the zanethan IG ruined my breakfast.
JED08
I do not think that Mason is straight. His social media used to be much more gay, but he changed it up as his acting career started taking off.
Fritz Westenberger
I think the headline is a subtle diss, and good on you, Queerty. Good-looking, young hetero actors have so many more casting opportunities than out gay actors, so when a few-and-far-between property comes along that is all about a gay relationship (not just a side story in a bigger narrative), cast out gay actors. Look at Fellow Travelers. Considering half this book takes place when Achilles and Patroclus are young teens just jerking off together, and Achilles is muscled demigod while Patroclus is smaller and thinner, the actors the filmmakers should be referencing are the leads from Heartstopper. And Gillian Anderson as Achilles evil mother! Done.
SDR94103
GAY FOR PAY. Just say no.
nm4047
So a somewhat average actor, with good looks what’s to audition for a part, why is that gay for pay. On the premise of the tabloid headline all str8 actors in role that the cast member is gay is gay for pay.
Man About Town
He looks like Tony Kushner after a 26-mile marathon.
bachy
I LOVE the term “gay for pay” and commend Queerty for keeping the historic, prostitution aspect of gay performance alive.
BLAKENOW
Hey Cameron Scheetz grow up and learn how to write better. It’s people like you that are taking the entire community backwards.
You don’t even understand what Acting is about. Please Stop writing about something you have no knowledge of.