Jim Parsons cites Brokeback Mountain as he weighs in on straight actors playing gay

Words: Jamie Tabberer; pictures: Netflix

Jim Parsons has addressed the debate around straight actors playing gay – while citing old classic Brokeback Mountain as an example of when it’s done right.

In an interview with the LA Times, the star also said that the fight “is not about having only gay people play the gay parts but to ensure that all parts are open to all actors.”

Which is a good point.

“There are plenty of straight actors who have played gay characters brilliantly”

The Boys In the Band star told the publication: “There’s definitely this spectrum: I think the fight, as it were, is not about having only gay people play the gay parts but to ensure that all parts are open to all actors. It’s important that gay characters are portrayed as well-rounded and completely human individuals.

Jim, who is gay, added: “And there are plenty of straight actors who have played gay characters brilliantly. I think ‘Brokeback Mountain’ is one of the most touching gay movies and love stories I have ever seen, and those two straight actors [Heath Ledger and Jake Gyllenhaal] were the best choices for those roles.”

Jim’s screen credits include Big Bang Theory, Hidden Figures and The Normal Heart.

Speaking about his hit Netflix film Boys In the Band, about a group of self-loathing gay men in 60s New York, the former Attitude cover star added: “As we were researching the period, it was jaw-dropping to be presented with articles from the New York Times where gay men were referred to in such derogatory terms and presented as animalistic and disgusting.”

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