LogFAQs > #944546893

Billy Eicher had a great interview where he addressed this issue. I bolded the more relevant parts and the parts where he addresses the eventual "Oh so straight people can't play gay characters EVER?!" responses. Also to any responses saying "Well why doesn't he make a movie to fix this issue", the interview talks about his upcoming movie where he plays Paul Lynde.

One of the main reasons I want to do this isbecause gay actors are never, hardly ever, I should say, allowed to play our own gay icons. Harvey Milk, Freddie Mercury, Elton John. Where are the gay actors? And its not to take anything away from those performances, which were all excellent. But why dont we get to tell our own stories? I have a lot of friends who are openly gay actors in Hollywood. Many of us are successful, and have carved out lovely careers, to varying degrees. But when it really comes to some big project about a gay icon, the one everyones throwing awards atwe love the spectacle of rewarding a straight actor, for quote unquote, transforming himself into a gay person.

I dont think there needs to be a rule, like straight actors can never play gay, but it is so lopsided. It never works in the other direction. And were not even allowed to play our own heroes. I can tell you right now, that a gay actor, a gay person in general, understands the nuances, the idiosyncrasies, and the emotional complexity of playing another gay person, especially a famous gay person, playing another famous gay person, than a straight person does. And we are never granted the opportunity to bring all of our life experience, as gay people, to the screen, and it has become a little bit frustrating to watch that happen over and over and over again.

https://deadline.com/2020/07/billy-eichner-paul-lynde-movie-man-in-the-actor-stigmatized-for-being-gay-eichner- feels-things-havent-changed-for-gay-actors-1202990876/


---

PoW '09 Topic of the Year Co-Winners (Rada and Texy) FFD