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Newsweek Article About Gay Actors Playing Straight Draws Conflicting Comments From Hollywood
Posted on Thu May 13, 2010 10:50 AM PDT
Ramin Setoodeh's Newsweek article "Straight Jacket" is causing a lot of fury!
Setoodeh asks a reasonable question: "Heterosexual actors play gay all the time. Why doesn't it ever work in reverse?" But in a confusing turn, criticizes the very actors paving the way for others. "The [Broadway] revival of Promises, Promises hands the lead over to Sean Hayes, best known as the queeny Jack on Will & Grace," writes Setoodeh.
And what about Jonathan Groff on Glee, Cheyenne Jackson on 30 Rock and Wanda Sykes on Old Christine?
Well, Hollywood is pissed! Jarret Barrios - prez of the Gay & Lesbian Alliance Against Defamation - and Oscar-winning writer Dustin Lance Black wrote a scathing response in The Hollywood Reporter. Hayes' co-star in Promises, Promises Kristin Chenoweth posted an angry letter about the article, including the following snippet:
- "This article offends me because I am a human being, a woman and a Christian. For example, there was a time when Jewish actors had to change their names because anti-Semites thought no Jew could convincingly play Gentile."
Finally, Aaron Sorkin wrote an article for The Huffington Post, arguing that he doesn't believe "Setoodeh was being homophobic, just wrong." In fact, Sorkin doesn't hate on the critic as much as everyone else - he even calls him one of "the good guys."
Wow, so much backlash! Will Hayes himself comment, and does he even need to?
Crazy...
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Comments
The gay community still doesn't get it. Most people, including hollywood actors, find gay guys to be gross. Everyone lies to their face, but when the gays leave the room, the ugly remarks come out. Sorry but that 's the way it is and the gay community still doesn't understand it.
The homophobic community still doesn't get it. Most people, including hollywood actors, find homophobics to be gross. Everyone lies to their face, but when the homophobics leave the room, the ugly remarks come out. Sorry but that's the way it is and the homophobic community still doesn't understand it.
I have to agree with this for the most part, although it doesn't have anything to do with an actor's talent, it's their believability. Viewers are less likely to "believe" them in a straight role when they know they are gay. It is just something in the back of people's minds and it doesn't mean they aren't good actors, it is just reality and I'm not sure there is much we can do about it. Not sure why this is so controversial since the guy who wrote the original article is gay himself! He's just trying to share his opinion, he obviously isn't trying to hate on the gay (his own) community.
11:01 i think they get it that's why they try so hard to make us accept such a demonic and gross behavior. why do they try so hard to make us believe what they are doing/acting is normal. it isn't. when i see a knowingly gay man try to be straight it doesn't work. that is the bottom line...no pun intended! it's like a white man putting on black face to try and play a black man in a movie. it isn't believable and doesn't work!!! accept it and move on!!
homophoic is a dump word. people aren't SCARED of gays. they just don't like two men s u c k'ng on each other pen-is after it has been in each others a n a l cavity which is covered in feces. it is what it is...that's all!
To 12:38, if the viewers can't get the fact that an actor is gay out of their minds while watching them on screen, then that is due to their own prejudice, nothing else. I was watching Sean Hayes on Scrubs the other day and completely forgot he was gay.
To 12:40, a white person playing a black person is completely different. The difference is black people and white people LOOK different, apart from the skin colour there are also differences between nose shapes and hair sytles. There is however no physical differences between a gay man and a straight man.
To 12:46 - The defination of homophobic is "Fear of OR contempt for lesbians and gay men".
I think it has something to do with the gay actor's personality. If the gay actor is kind of girly in real life, viewers have a hard time to believe him in a straight role unless he is super good at acting and he changes his appearance to not look like what he looks like everyday. If his acting skill is average, he won't be able to pull it off.
Neil Patrick Harris is not a girly gay. He is very convincing in a straight role.
NEIL PATRICK HARRIS. have they heard of him. the gay guy who plays with perfection an heterosexual man !!!
L J, calm down and go have a cocktail (no pun intended...well sort of.)
Lj, is rupaul
12:56...gays made up that word homo-foe-bick! lol!!! just think about the act and get back to me. okay? feces...yes, feces..then suck-it like a lollypop. then you wonder why people have trouble with the act because that isn't normal. own it please!!!
Queers are always going to be loathed by some people. Get used to it.
LJ @ 12:52, realizing that someone is gay isn't a "prejudice" it is just common sense. You need to get off of your high horse and stop acting like you know better than everyone else. This is TRUE, and get over it if you don't like it because it is just a fact of life!