George Clooney has a nice interview in the new issue of The Advocate. I’m guessing that he did this before the Oscars, which means that George was probably in the mind-set of “This will be published after I win my second Oscar, so I need to sound like I’ve just been crowned The King of Hollywood.” That’s not fair, though. He’s only slightly preachy in this piece. The reason behind the interview is interesting – he’s participating in a one-night-only reading of Dustin Lance Black’s play 8, which is “adapted from transcripts of California’s historic Proposition 8 trial.” Clooney is all about gay rights! And he doesn’t care if you think he’s gay, either. Well… he probably does care. But he doesn’t want you to know he cares. You can read the whole piece here, and here are some highlights:

On why he’s fighting for marriage equality: It’s always been this albatross that stood out to me as the final leg of the civil rights movement. It really came to a head during the 2004 elections, when it was used as a wedge issue, and it was a very effective tool to keep the Republicans in office and to avoid talking about other issues. Well before Prop. 8, I’ve made the point that every time we’ve stood against equality, we’ve been on the wrong side of history. It’s the same kind of argument they made when they didn’t want blacks to serve in the military, or when they didn’t want blacks to marry whites. One day the marriage equality fight will look as archaic as George Wallace standing on the University of Alabama steps keeping James Hood from attending college because he was black. People will be embarrassed to have been on the wrong side. So it’s encouraging to know that this too will seem like such a silly argument to our next generation. There are even a lot of young conservatives today for whom marriage equality isn’t an issue. It always takes government an extra generation to catch up to the people.

On his bromance with Brad Pitt: I do think we’ve set the bar very high. People think Brad and I hang out all the time, but the truth is that we see each other very rarely, maybe a couple times a year. I’ve had great fun spending time with my friend again over the awards season. Not only do I enjoy him as a person and respect his talent, but I also love what he does in the world. I can’t speak highly enough about how hard he works at making the world better. I’m very proud to call him my friend.

On actors coming out: It’s obviously not the same as if it were the ’50s and ’60s with Rock Hudson. Look at Neil Patrick Harris. He’s a big star on a hit show, and no one’s telling him he can’t play a straight womanizer. I use Neil as an example because I’ve spent time with him and I like him a lot. People like Neil and Ellen DeGeneres have opened the door to making it easier for everyone, and now each person just has to figure out his or her own path. Maybe it’s as simple as a gay actor going to work and getting the job done.

On gay rumors about him: I think it’s funny, but the last thing you’ll ever see me do is jump up and down, saying, “These are lies!” That would be unfair and unkind to my good friends in the gay community. I’m not going to let anyone make it seem like being gay is a bad thing. My private life is private, and I’m very happy in it. Who does it hurt if someone thinks I’m gay? I’ll be long dead and there will still be people who say I was gay. I don’t give a sh-t.

On making a gay biopic, such as The Paul Lynde Story: Yeah, I’d play the center square. The title of the movie would be I’ll Take Paul Lynde to Block. Listen, there are a bunch of interesting stories out there, but I just haven’t found a screenplay with a gay subject that felt right for me as something that I could direct or act in. I’m certainly not avoiding it. Whether it’s about being gay or it just happens to have a gay character, if it’s a great screenplay, let’s go do it.

George thinks Ryan Gosling is hot: Not that I don’t think Bradley Cooper is a perfectly sexy guy, but I’m still shocked that Ryan Gosling didn’t get Sexiest Man Alive last year. I thought he worked hard and ran a very solid campaign, so I feel that he was ripped off.

On Michael Fassbender’s nude scene in Shame: Well, c’mon. Every guy who saw that movie was like, “Jesus Christ,” at the exact same time.

[From The Advocate]

I love that Clooney keeps talking about Michael Fassbender and, you know, the Fassdong. Clooney should be Fassy’s publicist – he’s doing more to get Michael noticed than anyone else (except for me, I guess).

As for the possibility that Clooney is gay – I’ve gone back and forth on it in the past. At this point, I think Clooney is mostly straight. If you told me he liked dudes who looked like ladies, I wouldn’t be surprised. If you told me he’ll date a woman even if she wasn’t born a woman, I would agree. But I do think he’s mostly straight – if he was gay, he would certainly have better taste in beards, wouldn’t he? He has sex with women. Woman with Adam’s apples. Women who are very strong, women who don’t mind dominating in some friendly games amongst consenting adults.

Photos courtesy of WENN, Fame.