There is ongoing debate and discussion within the entertainment industry and LGBTQ+ community about whether only gay actors should play gay characters. While some people argue that only actors who identify as LGBTQ+ should be cast in LGBTQ+ roles, others believe that an actor’s sexual orientation should not be a determining factor in casting decisions.
Ultimately, the decision about who to cast in a particular role is up to the director and producers of a project. However, it’s important to consider the impact that casting decisions can have on representation and visibility for LGBTQ+ people in the entertainment industry. If LGBTQ+ actors are consistently passed over for LGBTQ+ roles, it can perpetuate the idea that LGBTQ+ people are not capable of playing a wide range of characters or that their experiences are not valuable.
Which straight actors have played gay parts?
There are many straight actors who have played LGBTQ+ characters in films, television shows, and theatre productions. Here are some examples:
It is worth noting that the casting of straight actors to play gay characters has been a topic of debate in recent years, with some arguing that it is important to provide more opportunities for LGBTQ actors to tell their own stories.
Ultimately, the goal should be to create more opportunities for LGBTQ+ actors to play a diverse range of characters, including LGBTQ+ characters, while also ensuring that LGBTQ+ representation is portrayed in a respectful and accurate way.
In 2004, at the age of 19, American Garrard Conley was sent by his parents to a conversion therapy program to rid him of his homosexual feelings. This true story is now a film called Boy Erased.
The amazing Lucas Hedges (Lady Bird,Manchester by the Sea) plays Garrard. He is a young man growing up in a small bible belt community in Arkansas. His father Marshall (Russell Crowe) is a respected pastor in the local church while his mother Nancy (Nicole Kidman) believes in everything her husband says. But Garrard is given a choice by his parents when he tells them he is gay: either agree to attend the church-support conversion therapy program where he will have to go to a camp with similar young adults or risk losing his family, a family that he is quite close to. Garrard has no choice but to go through therapy. Garrard is happy being gay – even entering into a relationship with a fellow student at college – but it is his religious upbringing (and a stern father) which helps him make the decision to go to therapy.
Once he is at the Love in Action gay conversion therapy assessment program, he meets fellow young men like himself (including director and actor Xavier Dolan, and Joe Alwyn – at the time of this writing Taylor Swift’s boyfriend). They all struggle to not come to terms with the way they are, meanwhile all the time guided by the chief therapist Victor Sykes (writer and director of the film Joel Edgerton). But of course, Garrard has urges that he can’t control, while his parents feel that for him to lead a happy life is to lead the life of a straight man.
The real Garrard Conley, of course, luckily survived his time in the therapy program to write the book which is now this film, and it’s a very good film. Hedges, as always, is fantastic. One never knows what he’s thinking because of his inquisitive facial expressions, and he steals the movie from the two heavyweight actors who are playing his parents. Crowe is excellent as the self-righteous father but Kidman is both warm and tender as the mother who loves her husband but perhaps loves her son a bit more. Boy Erased is at times heartbreaking, but for the most part, it’s triumphant.
Welcome to the club hunny! Lucas Hedges has confirmed in a recent interview that he doesn’t identify as totally straight. But not Bisexual or Gay. Somewhere on the spectrum.
The Boy Erased and Manchester By The Sea star was speaking in a Vulture interview when he sort of “came out” after revealing he had a crush on a boy at camp.
He confided in his mother,
“I felt terrible about it. I remember her being very comforting, and she understood that something was distressing me, and she said, ‘You don’t have to go back to camp today.’ [Pause] I’m sorry, I can’t help but feel a little self-conscious, only because I’m talking to you and the world at the same time.”
He continues,
“I owe it to this part to speak as honestly as possible. 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, I existed on a spectrum.”
Lucas recalls learning about that spectrum from a health teacher in sixth grade — and was at first concerned he didn’t feel like he fit all the way into the nice box of “straight”:
“I felt ashamed that I wasn’t 100 percent, because it was clear that one side of sexuality presents issues, and the other doesn’t as much.”
Finally, he explains,
“I recognise myself as existing on that spectrum: Not totally straight, but also not gay and not necessarily bisexual.”
US swimmer, Abrahm DeVine has come out as gay in an inspiring interview in Swimming World Magazine. Before coming out to his teammates, 22-year-old DeVine described his worry about how they would react on hearing the news. He said, “I’m a gay athlete. There aren’t too many of us, so when I came out to my college team, that was a really tough time for me.”
Panic At The Disco singer Brendon came out as pansexual. He said, “I just like good people, if your heart’s in the right place. I’m definitely attracted to men. It’s just people that I am attracted to. I guess this is me coming out as pansexual.”
Twenty-three-year-old Collin Martin came out as gay, wrapped in a pride flag. Amen to that. He becomes the second Stateside pro footballer to do so. Robbie Rogers was the first in 2013. He made the announcement via Twitter, writing “I am announcing for the first time publicly that I am an openly gay player in Major League Soccer, June is Pride month, and I am proud to be playing for Pride, and to be playing as an out gay man.”
The 23-year-old DJ and producer came out as bisexual in Feb 2018 saying, “Now I dream of finding the person I want to share my life with, man or woman.”
Many people interpreted song lyrics to Harry’s song “Medicine”. In the song, Harry sings: “…The boys and the girls are here, I mess around with them, and I’m okay with it. I’m coming down, I figured out I kinda like it, and when I sleep i’m gonna dream of how you tasted…”
He also appeared with a rainbow flag numerous times on his promotional tour.
This isn’t the first time Harry Styles has talked about his sexuality, however. A few years ago he told a reporter during an interview, that gender wasn’t an important factor for him when looking for a mate. He said that a sense of humour and being natural was key for him.
Despite this, Harry has not actually commented on his sexuality, but watch this space.
Jaden Smith confirmed that he was dating rap artist Tyler The Creator live on stage at a concert. Taking the microphone Jaden said, ‘I just wanna say Tyler, The Creator is the best friend in the world. And I love him so fing much, and I wanna tell you guys something, I wanna tell you, Tyler doesn’t wanna say, but Tyler is my mother fing boyfriend.’
Jake Atlas
Pro Wrestler Jake Atlas came out in Feb 2018 saying, “I am proud to fulfil my promise of coming out publicly about my sexuality to be a voice for those that struggle with this issue like I have for many, many years.”
Actor Jake Choi said that while he shot the TV series, Single Parents he identified as straight, he said “When I shot the movie I identified as straight – that’s how I was conditioned. Now, I identify as fluid.”
Twenty-seven-year-old actor Jake Borelli came out via Instagram the same night as his character on the show Grey’s Anatomy. Jake Borelli, took time on Thursday to write a heart-warming message on social media after his character, Dr Levi Schmitt, on the long-running TV drama, Grey’s Anatomy embarked on a same-sex love story. The actor wrote how he “craved” as a young person, storylines like the one his character is involved with and hoped that the character would bring hope to others.
Before the release of Love, Simon, Joey came out as gay. Speaking to US magazine, The Advocate the star said the film’s lead character, Simon, had an experience that was similar to his own.
He said that he came out to his friends and family when he was 18, saying that he thought that most of them “knew on some level”, but his mum always knew apparently. He revealed, “My mom knew. She laid hints for me everywhere.”
Kevin McHale
(C) BIGSTOCK
The Glee actor came out in 2018 on Twitter and is a brand new entry to this list. He has over 1.35 million followers on Twitter. Apart from Glee Kevin has also starred in the E4 panel show, Virtually Famous.
Kevin Laroy
http://gty.im/1052447514
Tattoo artist Kevin Laroy – also known as Babyface Killa came out to his father on the TV show Black Ink Crew. He said, “Whether you like it or not, I’m going to be me. The fact of the matter is… I am a gay black male.”
Boy Erased star Lucas Hedges has confirmed in a recent interview that he doesn’t identify as totally straight. But not Bisexual or Gay. Somewhere on the spectrum. The Boy Erased and Manchester By The Sea star was speaking in a Vulture interview when he sort of “came out” after revealing he had a crush on a boy at camp.
The Hobbit and Guardians of the Galaxy star Lee Pace came out in March this year saying, but was affronted by the question about his sexuality when asked by a journalist saying, “I’ve dated men, I’ve dated women,” he said. “I don’t know why anyone would care. I’m an actor and I play roles. To be honest, I don’t know what to say – I find your question intrusive.”
Matt Evers
Professional skater Matt Evers came out as gay in an interview with Attitude magazine. The 41-year-old star who is set to take part in the ITV show, Dancing On Ice, reveals that he was brought up in a very strict religious household, but decided to come out after being inspired by his uncle, who died of an AIDS-related illness over twenty years ago.
Michael shared that he was “sexually fluid”. Speaking to the Daily Beast about his new project, a play called Thom Pain, Dexter actor, Michael C Hall spoke about his own sexuality, saying that he thinks that sexuality is on a spectrum and that making out with a male actor night after night made him “lean” into being sexually fluid.
He told the website, “I think there’s a spectrum. I am on it … If there was a percentage, I would say I was not all the way heterosexual.”
Journalist Ronan came out as part of the LGBT community in 2018 saying, “Being a part of the LGBT community … which recognised that reporting I was doing early on and elevated it, and has been such a stalwart source of support through the sexual assault reporting I did involving survivors who felt equally invisible … that has been an incredible source of strength for me.”
