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Saturday 3 May 2008

Cumming out

The gay actor Alan Cumming says the media's attitude to matters sexual puts many gay actors off coming out. They're being scared off, says the 43-year-old X Men 2 star, because the media portray being homosexual as controversial.

"I don't think the people that go see films care that much," he tells the BBC in this story. "The media make it more of a deal and it's made into controversy. There is a lot of homophobia in the world – but in Hollywood definitely."

The BBC story goes on:

Actors like Stephen Fry and Rupert Everett recently complained they feel pigeonholed since coming out.

But Cumming, who "married" his partner Grant Shaffer in a civil ceremony last year, does not think he has been.

The BBC's use of scare quotes around married rather proves Cumming's point. All right, it's not officially called marriage, but who gives a toss? Anyway, that's just the British government's preference, and the British government is hand in glove with the churches on such issues. Daren't offend the men in frocks. And if the BBC meant "civil partnership" why the hell didn't it say that, instead of coyly quoting the word married? Bloody journos! But where were we? Oh yes . . .

"Some of them do, but lots of straight actors get pigeonholed in various roles," Cumming said. "I'm quite outspoken in the media about what I perceive as a civil-rights struggle that gay people in America are still going through.

"But I don't think that I only play gay characters, or I wouldn't be as convincing if I had a wife or a girlfriend in a movie."

Derek Munn, director of public affairs for the gay lobby group Stonewall, tells the Beeb, "Stonewall has long been concerned about the representation of lesbian and gay people, both in the film industry and the media in general. The pitifully low number of openly lesbian or gay actors suggests that there is a problem. The film industry needs to think about why it is that gay actors choose not to come out."

Because there are so many cigar-chewing bigots at the top (many no doubt with religious baggage) that the artists fear for their livelihoods, that's why.

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