The actor frequently talks about representation | Photo: Wikimedia/Gage Skidmore
Gay actor Ian McKellen addressed Hollywood’s problems with representation in a recent interview.
While speaking to Time Out, McKellen, who played Gandalf in both The Lord of the Rings and The Hobbit trilogies, discussed Dumbledore in Harry Potter.
The interviewer brought up the fact that Dumbledore will not be ‘explicitly gay’ in the upcoming Fantastic Beasts film.
‘Isn’t he? That’s a pity,’ McKellen responds simply. ‘Well, nobody looks to Hollywood for social commentary, do they?’
He then disparaged Hollywood’s treatment of marginalized groups in general and didn’t hold back for a second.
‘They only recently discovered that there were black people in the world. Hollywood has mistreated women in every possible way throughout its history. Gay men don’t exist.’
McKellen brought up his 1998 movie, Gods and Monsters, adding that was the ‘beginning of Hollywood admitting that there were gay people knocking around, even though half of Hollywood is gay’.
A lack of representation
There is proof that Hollywood needs to do better in regards to representation.
A recent GLAAD study revealed only 14 major studio movies from last year had LGBTQ characters. This is a drastic drop from 2016’s 23 film. No year has seen an equal amount of representation for this community.
Most of the inclusive films featured gay men (specifically 64%), while other characters — lesbians, LGBTQ people of color, bisexuals, and transgender people — still remain vastly underserved.
Clearly, though, McKellen’s comments, hyperbole or not, have some truth to them.
