The New York Times is no tabloid.
When they sat down to interview Rocketman actor Richard Madden for a recent profile, they weren’t about to go down the road of prying into his personal life.
So instead, they simply touched upon the increased tabloid interest in his life, noting that paparazzi have snapped photos of Madden with Flynn, and asked if the two are an item.
Related: Dexter Fletcher on the sex scene in ‘Rocketman’ and the Madonna biopic
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Wait a second, we see what they did there.
Madden shot down the question like a pro:
“Madden shrugged, unbothered by the question but in no hurry to answer it, either. ‘I just keep my personal life personal,” he said. “I’ve never talked about my relationships.'”
He also shared this handy celebrity tip that won’t actually be of use to 99.999% of people:
Related: Watch the exact moment Taron Egerton learns about gay sex slang
“I wear the same clothes days in a row, because if it looks like the same day, they can’t run the pictures. There’s only so many photos you can have of me with a green juice walking down the street.”
It’s not a tactic he sees employed by everyone in the spotlight:
“I’ll be at hotels and restaurants where they’ll tell you, ‘There’s paparazzi in the front, do you want to go out the front or go out the back?’ And you go, ‘Who wants to out the front?’ And they say, ‘Oh, quite a lot of people!’”
Read the full profile here, which includes what Madden is really doing in bed. (Spoiler: eating cheeseburgers.)
DarkZephyr
While it really is HIS business and nobody else’s if he’s dating a man, everybody knew when he was dating a woman and when asked about her, I doubt he ever answered with “I’ve never talked about my relationships”.
Donston
There’s definitely a decent amount of actors who go the route of “privacy” when asked about any rumored relationship. My wonder is why they have been persistently photographed together for months. If they are really trying to hide it they’re not doing a very good job. And if there’s really nothing going on he could have easily just said that they’re friends. But you’re right. It is their business.
If it is a legit relationship and it persists hopefully they won’t feel the need to keep it in a “glass closet” for too long. And hopefully, if they do become “public” they won’t politicize their relationship or become attention whores.
tardisintheksy
I made an account Just to reply to this. The reason people are so latched on this is that he’s said the EXACT same thing about his previous relationships. I think it’s unfair that everyone is acting entitled to his personal life ( I know he’s a celebrity and all but they’re still just people like us.)
montegutdude
What I wouldn’t give to be lost at sea for just one day in those ocean blue eyes. *sigh*
toronto
I can see the question now, `Mr. Astronaut, you have been to the moon and now mars, but the question on everyone`s mind is, are you boning a guy.“
Donston
The mainstream media, for the most part, have done a decent job of not indulging homosexual/homo-leaning/gay rumors over the last decade. However, every public figure gets asked about their rumored partners. A lot of the times these actors are asked about their personal lives they are well aware those questions are coming, and some set up those questions themselves. All of this is a part of the game.
Black Pegasus
So he’s bangin the sloppy seconds of Sam ‘porkchop’ Smith? Eww
Is it that hard for celebs (gay/str8) to find new decent people to date? Why must they run through each other like a nasty adult bookstore?
Walker
Madden and Flynn aren’t having sex–they’re doing lots and lots of drugs together. They’ve been seen emerging from men’s rooms on both coasts together looking like they’ve been snacking on powdered donuts. If you look at the photos CLOSELY what you see isn’t two lovers, it’s two puffy-looking, heavy-lidded people propping each other up. Madden isn’t denying the gay thing because it keeps people off the trail of the drug thing. Meanwhile, Flynn, who is neither especially hot or especially likable or talented is suddenly very popular among his set because he has the good stuff.