Out actor Rupert Everett recently shared his take on the ongoing “straight actors in gay roles” debate, and to sum up his views: It’s complicated.
Speaking on Piers Morgan Uncensored (cringe), the My Policeman star said that while he doesn’t think all gay roles should be played by gay actors, there was one gay role he really wished had gone to a specific gay actor — him.
“It’s quite frustrating. I was frustrated, I remember going to see Colin Firth in the [2009] film by Tom Ford [A Single Man]. I thought, ‘Well, thanks, Colin. That’s the end of my career. Because you know, that role really should have been mine,” he said. “So you know, there’s a frustration about that, of course.”
Firth’s performance as a gay English professor grieving the death of his lover earned him major accolades, including an Oscar nomination for Best Actor in a Leading Role.
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That one disappointment aside, Everett sees a bigger problem in openly gay actors rarely being cast in straight roles.
Related: Aaron Sorkin says casting only gay actors in gay roles is an “empty gesture”
“There’s many examples of fantastic straight actors playing great gay roles. Then there’s some less good, and I think the question is more, ‘Why can’t gay actors play straight roles?’” Everett said.
“The thing that was very frustrating, when I had my big Hollywood moment, which was playing a gay best friend and being gay, it was at that point very difficult to graduate,” Everett said, speaking of the1997 rom-com “My Best Friend’s Wedding” starring Julia Roberts.
“I knew I had to try and graduate to playing something else apart from just that role,” he said. “I felt that it was more or less impossible. I don’t think gay actors should just play the gay roles. But the gay actors should be able to play the straight roles, too.”
Everett also spoke about trans roles going to trans actors, criticizing the backlash that led to Scarlett Johansson to pull out of playing a trans character in Rub & Tug in 2018.
“People forget that Hollywood is a business. So for example, when Scarlett Johansson was stopped from playing a trans role, there simply wasn’t a trans actress at that point big enough to sustain a 50-60 million dollar movie,” he said.
“I found that was a mistake of the trans community because there were probably lots of other trans roles in the film that would have been played by trans actresses and Scarlett Johansson wasn’t going to be doing some portraits that was anti-trans. So I felt it was slightly blinkered attitude.”
kish
His career was kind of over way before that movie was made.
He was good in Adult Material, though.
bachy
Rupert Everett is easily one of my favorite actors ever. He’s brilliant. He portrayed a fascinating straight character – secret lover to a married woman – opposite Emily Watson and Tom Wilkinson in ‘Separate Lies’ (2005).
white-queer-african
I recall “Another Country” and absolutely loved it. The ending, him living in exile in Russia, where he says it missed the tea back home, had me sobbing. Then seeing him in “Dance with a Stranger” and numerous movies and series after that. Great actor and alley.
powersthatbe
Mr E seems to complain a lot about the industry, in numerous interviews over the years, and comes across (at least to me) as being very hard-done-by and victim of the “heterosexual Hollywood agenda”. Reports of being a diva have dogged him, and may explain more why he hasn’t been given roles. There is a high likelihood that he was penalised being an openly gay man, but he hasn’t done too badly. I do tend to agree with him about the Trans roles and SJ, but replace Trans for gay, and he doesn’t see the irony that it’s exactly the same for us gays.
MrGoldman
Well, maybe it has to do with his repeated nasty comments about gay parents? Everett told the Sunday Times Magazine that he “can’t think of anything worse than being brought up by two gay dads… Some people might not agree with that. Fine! That’s just my opinion,”. In a 2009 interview with The Daily Beast, he called the practice “utterly hideous” and “egocentric and vain.”
You can say what you want, but there are consequences to free speech and being a nasty queen.
DBMC
My understanding is that he’s really difficult to work with. He also tends to bad mouth the people he has worked with.
But, also, he did this on PIERS MORGAN?
He’s that desperate?
arekyyz
I was thinking along the same lines: He lost me at Piers…
CNY1983
another crybaby. piers morgan? if thats whats left of his career he should call madonna and see if she needs a cleaning lady.
inbama
Of all the roles to have regretted not playing, you’d think the lead in a film hardly anyone saw wouldn’t top his list.
Joshooeerr
It’s a masterpiece. Watch it.
Paulie P
it was the role and the attention it received he regrets not the box office numbers. it was a good role for a gay actor. and he is 100 percent right on regarding Scarlett and her movie. groups to quick to cause an uproar these days.
Berkshires Jim
I don’t think he helped his career at all by having that awful plastic surgery job on his face. I mean, without the chiron under the picture identifying him, would anyone even recognize him as Rupert Everett? I loved him in My Best Friends Wedding and even more in An Ideal Husband; now THAT is a great fun film with a great cast. Anyway…I understand he is angry but every time I read about him now it is him being angry. Not helping.
AZ71
Rupert’s career ended because he was seen as difficult to work with on-set. Then he messed his face up with plastic surgery so no one recognized him anymore (Jennifer Grey syndrome)…then he proceeds to complain about roles he didn’t get. Guess what…half of Hollywood (famous people) audition for practically every role and they dont get it either. Its part of the biz.
inbama
Career ended? Check out his resume on IMDB. Most actors would be ecstatic to be so continually employed.
bsg1967
He’s always been an entitled, privliged whinger since the 90’s. Yes some roles were lost for being out I’m sure but Hollywood is about money you bring in the cash they don’t care if your doing the neighbours goat.
JTinToronto
A toque with a suit? What’s that all about?
Just.my.opinion
He just always seems so negative and mean-spirited. It doesn’t matter if he is a good actor or not. He should try being a good human being.
SuperSucker
So if only gay actors can play gay roles are we alright with only straight actors being cast in straight roles? How about the best actor be cast in roles regardless of sexual orientation?
Jaquelope
I totally agree.
mz.sam
No shit, Sherlock.
Leo
That would be ideal, wouldn’t it. But is Rupert kidding us? Gay actors have been playing str8 roles as long as I can remember and I am 82. In fact, before I can remember.
inbama
If you reread the article, you’ll see he agrees with you. He doesn’t believe actors should be cast because of their sexual orientation or gender identity.
He just wanted that role.
Kangol2
He agrees with you, but the difference is that 82 years ago most actors of whatever gender were not OUT. Rupert Everett is an out gay man. That is a significant shift, no?
RyanMBecker
There’s a lot of truth in what he said. In fact, they were some of the most intelligent comments on the subject that I’ve read.
BaltoSteve
‘Well, thanks, Colin. That’s the end of my career. Because you know, that role really should have been mine,” doesn’t make Rupert seem entitled at all.. nope not one bit. And, before some apologist chimes in with, “Well he meant…”, regardless of what he meant to say, how he chose to say and express his thoughts highlights how he actually feels. Not that he should have been given the opportunity to read for the role, but that he should have gotten it because of who he is, which is the definition of entitlement.
Ronbo
As a staffing agent, I had the pleasure of interviewing candidates following the client interview. As a general rule, the people who did not get the job had the highest expectations consistently saying “I’m a perfect fit”. Rupert represents this.
Producers make these decisions and since their butt/cash is on the line, they may make conservative decisions. At least when gambling on horses, there is one guaranteed winner. Not so with movies.
Romulus
So, Tangerine was released in 2015 featuring top-notch critically acclaimed performances from Kitana Kiki Rodriguez and Mya Taylor, yet according to Everett in 2018 there was not a big enough trans actress to sustain a mid-budget flick. Disingenuous.