Matt Damon has a message for closeted actors — stay put if you want to keep your career, or you’ll end up like Rupert Everett.
Damon told the Guardian: “I don’t want to, like [imply] it’s some sort of disease – then it’s like I’m throwing my friends under the bus.”
Cue the “but.”
“But at the time, I remember thinking and saying, Rupert Everett was openly gay and this guy – more handsome than anybody, a classically trained actor – it’s tough to make the argument that he didn’t take a hit for being out.”
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It’s worth noting that Damon had to go back nearly 20 years to find an example to support his theory. After all, Zachary Quinto, Neil Patrick Harris, Jim Parsons, Matt Bomer and Wentworth Miller seem to be doing alright for themselves, but would they be even bigger names if the world still thought they were heterosexual?
Back when Damon and Ben Affleck hit the scene running with Good Will Hunting and there were rumors that the two were lovers, Damon told Playboy: “I never denied those rumors because I was offended and didn’t want to offend my friends who were gay – as if being gay were some kind of f**king disease. It put me in a weird position in that sense. The whole thing was just gross.”
Damon went on to tell the Guardian that all actors should be in the closet, so to speak.
“In terms of actors, I think you’re a better actor the less people know about you period,” Damon explained.
“And sexuality is a huge part of that. Whether you’re straight or gay, people shouldn’t know anything about your sexuality because that’s one of the mysteries that you should be able to play.”
