Actor Luke Evans, who has appeared in films such Fast & Furious 6, Dracula Untold and The Alienist is weighing in on the discussion that only queer actors should play queer roles.
The openly gay actor, who voices Scrooge in the upcoming animated Netflix film A Christmas Carol sat for an interview with The Telegraph and was asked his thoughts on the matter, and here's what he said:
“Gay people have definitely missed out on gay roles, for sure,” he said. “I get it, and I totally think that things do need to change.
“But from my perspective: firstly, I wouldn’t have had a career if gay people played gay roles and straight people played straight roles. I’d have played two roles out of the 36 projects I’ve worked on, or whatever [the number] is.”
It should be noted that Evans was directly responding to writer Russell T. Davies stating that when casting for the series It's a Sin it was significantly important to cast queer actors for authenticity.
“They are not there to ‘act gay’ because ‘acting gay’ is a bunch of codes for a performance,” Davies said.
Evans says that he thinks it’s important for actors to be cast in roles based on “talent and ability, and a bit of luck and timing.
“That should be the reason why you get a job. It shouldn’t have anything to do with anything else,” he said.
In a perfect world I would agree with Luke, and don't get me wrong he made some valid points.
I actually have no problem with straight actors playing gay roles as long as the playing field is even, where gay actors are afforded the opportunity to be cast in straight leading roles.
We don't need casting directors pushing this narrative that a gay actor playing straight wouldn't be believable to the straight audience.
I also have a problem with the industry quickly rewarding straight actors for playing queer roles as if playing a gay man, lesbian or trans is going so far outisde of who they are in real life.
But if someone queer plays a queer role, it's looked at as being "authentic," so it's not really acting on their part.
What people need to realize is that being queer isn't a monolith, and that sexuality and gender identity is complex.
The only way Hollywood will understand that concept is by greenlighting more diverse queer stories to be told on the big and small screen
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