Known for playing gay characters in 'The Devil Wears Prada' and 'Supernova', the 'Lovely Bones' actor explains why it's okay for straight actors to take on the gay roles onscreen.
- Jul 5, 2023
AceShowbiz - Stanley Tucci has said it's "fine" for straight actors to play gay roles. The 62-year-old actor - who is married to Emily Blunt's sister Felicity - was known for playing gay characters in 2006's "The Devil Wears Prada" and 2020 movie "Supernova".
"You're supposed to play different people. You just are. That's the whole point of it. Obviously, I believe that's fine," he told BBC Radio 4's "Desert Island Discs".
Stanley noted that he gets plenty of gay men approaching him to talk about the films and praising him for taking on the roles "in the right way." He added, "I am always very flattered when gay men come up to me and talk to me about 'The Devil Wears' Prada or they talk about 'Supernova', and they say that, 'It was just so beautiful,' you know, 'You did it the right way.' Because often, it's not done the right way."
Last year, Tom Hanks took a very different stance as he insisted a straight actor would not be able to play a gay character like he did in 1993 drama "Philadelphia". In the Jonathan Demme movie, Tom - who won the best actor Oscar for his performance - played a gay man with HIV who faces discrimination at work.
However, he told the New York Times Magazine, "Let's address 'could a straight man do what I did in Philadelphia now?' No, and rightly so. The whole point of 'Philadelphia' was don't be afraid. One of the reasons people weren't afraid of that movie is that I was playing a gay man. We're beyond that now, and I don't think people would accept the inauthenticity of a straight guy playing a gay guy."
He explained that it's "not boohoo" or a big deal that people want more "authenticity" on the big screen. He added, "It's not a crime, it's not boohoo, that someone would say we are going to demand more of a movie in the modern realm of authenticity. Do I sound like I'm preaching? I don't mean to."
