Luke Evans is not of the opinion that an actor’s sexuality needs to correspond with the orientation of the character they are portraying.
When asked about statements made by the showrunner of Doctor Who a year ago, Russell T. Davies, the 43-year-old actor acknowledged in an interview with The Telegraph published on Thursday that “gay people have definitely missed out on gay roles.” The actor, who has never hidden the fact that he is gay, is now 43 years old.
Davies stated in an interview with The New York Times in 2021 that he believed that only gay actors should be authorized to play gay characters in the majority of cases, despite the fact that The Telegraph did not clarify which quotes of Davies were being used.
And despite the fact that Evans is “not sure about that,” he does confess that he sees where Davies, 59, is coming from and that he “absolutely think(s) that things do need to change.”
“But from my perspective: first of all, I wouldn’t have had a career if gay people played homosexual roles and straight people played straight roles,” he remarked. “But that’s not how it works.”
The actor who appeared in Beauty and the Beast continued by saying, “I’d have performed two roles out of the 36 projects I’ve worked on, or whatever [the number] is.”
In addition, Evans disclosed that in his opinion, it is more important that “the correct person gets the job,” regardless of what that job may be, and that this decision should be made based on “talent and skill, as well as a bit of luck and timing.”
He continued by saying, “That ought to be the reason why you obtain a job.” “It really shouldn’t have any bearing on anything else that’s going on.”
When asked about his personal life, Evans stated that he has “lived an openly gay life” ever since he was a teenager. However, he recalled being “told I have to come out again, like it’s a big thing” when he was breaking into the film scene 14 years later, around the age of 30. This occurred when he was around age 30.
“Therefore, it was strange, and having to put up with that despite the fact that it was uncomfortable was a burden to bear — the public opinion stating that I went back into the closet and everything else like that. Totally and completely absurd, “Evans was able to recall.
To be more specific, the actor from Echo 3 recalls going to a global premiere with a female acquaintance, at which time the two of them “giggled so hard” about a report that stated she was his girlfriend.
“However, the next item that comes up is, “Luke Evans has a beard, and he’s trying to keep it a secret!” People have it completely backward! “he stated. “And how easily a story may be concocted to the point that I had to keep it a secret. And I didn’t at all.”
