https://x.com/ardy_public/status/2018696228234551779
This is interesting. If Sam is actually bi (and I think he most likely is), I hate to think of him (or any actor) still feeling like he can't come out without hurting his career. But I also get people just not wanting to deal with that intrusiveness into their personal life.
Very interesting, anon. He's not wrong - there are so many gay and queer actors out there, and how and when people choose to come out, if they do at all, is such a personal thing, but I can understand having thoughts and feelings on it as an openly gay actor. Perhaps oddly, it kind of reminds me of Ian McKellan accidentally outing Richard Armitage during The Hobbit's press run, where Richard was seemingly out with the other actors (hell, he started dating Lee Pace on that set), but he clearly didn't want to be publicly out (and didn't talk about it at all until 2023).
There's a complicated dynamic to that, particularly as it's a bit of a snake-eat-tail situation where the industry won't ever feel like it's changing without visibility and representation, yet actors should be allowed their privacy and shouldn't be made to publicise what's personal to them in the name of that representation, particularly when there's still so much homophobia entrenched in both industry and society.
It's tricky! It's interesting too that he brings up being one of the very few gay actors in Interview too, and I think an important point to acknowledge, even though I don't think actors have to be openly queer or even queer at all to play queer roles. This is kind of an aside, but I've been a little worried for a while about an out gay actor playing Magnus, given this fandom does sometimes struggle to separate the performer from the performance (and is prone to perpetuating homophobic rhetoric), but also a little because I think there are some - - mm, let's say murky connotations of casting a gay man as a violent rapist when most of the other queer roles are played by actors either straight or at the very least, not out. I'm hoping the supporting cast is rounded out with more out actors as a result this season, and it does at least seem like Ben's more or less confirmed to be back for s3, which hopefully eases some of that, but yes.
Hopefully everyone's respectful to Damien (I'm very excited to see him in the role!).
