Neil Patrick Harris: ‘I’ve lived my whole life being attracted by masculinity’

April 2014 - Neil Patrick Harris LO

This should be how we see Neil Patrick Harris at all times: covered in confetti. I thought this was glitter at first, but I guess THAT would be a gay stereotype! Anyway, NPH covers the new issue of Out Magazine to promote his new Broadway role in Hedwig and the Angry Inch. He ends up talking a lot about doing Broadway (again, he’s done Broadway several times before) and most significantly to me, he talks about his supporting role in Gone Girl. You can read the full Q&A here, and here are some highlights:

He sees himself in his son Gideon. “He asks ‘Why?’ now, for everything. We’re very similar. It seems he wants to break things down and figure them out. We both have kind of the furrowed brow — we want to get to the core of things.”

Not so subtle shade: “It always amazes me when Oscar-nominated actors go on award shows and read the teleprompter as if they have never seen it before. And I know they’ve already vetted it, that their publicist or manager has already agreed to it, and yet, there they are, standing there, with that kind of ‘Who wrote this s–t?’ attitude while monotonically reading off these words. Then again, I’ve gotten to do theater and know what it feels like to stand in front of live people, and a lot of movie people don’t do that ever.”

On the insecurities playing Hedwig brought up inside himself: “Hedwig is bringing up a lot of super insecure things within me. I have never thought drag was intoxicating, I’ve never had a fun drunken Halloween in drag, never been in heels, really. I’ve lived my whole life being attracted by masculinity – it’s why I like guys. I’m not a super effete person, and I have to turn into that, and in doing so it brings up a lot of homophobic insecurities within myself.”

Filming a sex scene with Rosamund Pike in the thriller Gone Girl: “We had to rehearse the sex scene with David [Fincher], like every inch of it – ‘Then you put your mouth on his d–k here, and then this number of thrusts, and then you ejaculate.’ It was weird because we’re technically breaking down the sex scene. He wanted it to be almost robotic, that we know exactly where we are, position-wise, where everything goes. And yet, through all of that, the whole ‘I’m gay’ element was never even thought about.

How women view him since his coming out: “I’ve found that a lot of girls have no issue with me being gay. They still want to marry me. And I love that.”

Saying goodbye to How I Met Your Mother: “I won’t ever be able to play someone like Barney again because he’s so unique, but we had over 200 episodes. And my exclusivity deal is done with Fox.” He waits another beat, and smiles. “So finally I’ll be able to do more p0rn.”

[From Out]

I really, really like NPH’s honesty about doing full-on drag for Hedwig and the issues it has raised for him. “I’ve lived my whole life being attracted by masculinity – it’s why I like guys.” I like the way he talks about his sexuality because… it’s non-event, and yet you can tell he’s still learning about his own preconceived notions about sexuality.

Oh, and for Gone Girl. He’s going to be amazing as that creepy character. If you know the book, you know the character and I don’t think anyone else could have really been cast in that role. Rosamund Pike was inspired casting as well. If only the Nick character had been cast with such brilliance. Ben Affleck is going to be the weakest link, I think.

NPH

NPH1

Photos courtesy of Michael Muller/Out Magazine.

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21 Responses to “Neil Patrick Harris: ‘I’ve lived my whole life being attracted by masculinity’”

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  1. Aurie says:

    He comes off a bit full of himself on judging the Oscar people….who might be nervous or one of those situations where you thought something would be funny/awesome when practicing in front of a mirror, but when you’re being broadcasted to 40 million people, you suddenly realize how dumb it sounds.

    It’s not like he’ll ever be nominated for an Oscar anyway, regardless of how his fans think he’s the most amazing actor ever.

    • GoodNamesAllTaken says:

      I didn’t take it that way, just because it strikes me every year that the presenters seem so stilted and unnatural in their presentation. They always look like the words are too small and they’re straining to read them, having never seen them before and I’ve always wondered why they don’t practice a little before going in front of millions of people. They have plenty of warning. It’s one of the reasons the Oscars are such torture to watch.

      • MrsBPitt says:

        I’m with you Goodnames…the presenters rehearse their lines, AND its on the teleprompter…NPH is right, its like they have never seen it before…its bugs me, too!

    • Esmom says:

      Ooh, harsh. I don’t think he was implying he deserved an Oscar in any way, just commenting on how some presenters could maybe take the job more seriously and then look better in the end. He seems like a highly professional guy so it probably bugs him when people are less so. I also thought maybe it was a subtle dig at Travolta.

      I really liked everything he had to say here. He seems thoughtful, humble, smart and funny.

  2. Mouse says:

    Love him!

  3. Godwina says:

    Beautiful man. That is all.

  4. blue marie says:

    I like him, like his honesty. Barney is the whole reason I kept watching a few season of HIMYM, it’s better now but in the middle it was kind of “meh”.

  5. Jaderu says:

    I never did get into HIMYM but I’ll always love and remember Doogie.
    Ben Affleck is always the weakest link unless he’s in the director’s chair.

  6. Helvetica says:

    I love him. He gives a great interview and he plays Barney so well. He is a great actor.

  7. MrsBPitt says:

    I cannot wait for the movie Gone Girl…and before I read the book, I would have said the Ben Affleck would be the weakest link, but the description of the character, I can see Ben playing that role. Plus, I love, love David Fincher, and if he thinks Ben can do it, I trust him!

    • Lilo says:

      Hmm, I am not happy with either Ben and Neil. I love Neil, but I imagined Desi to be…chubbier, slightly off-putting, awkward and kind of “closet pervert-y” Can’t see Neil doing that for some reasons.

    • MellyG says:

      Exactly! There’s a description in the book about how Nick has the kind of face people want to punch , and i feel like that’s how many people feel about poor Ben, so i think it’s ideal casting!

  8. Ag says:

    Love NPH.

  9. danielle says:

    He is the best. Seeing him in Harold and Kumar was a revelation, and love him in himym. Didn’t know he was in gone girl, that just became a must see for me.

  10. serena says:

    I just love NPH! He’s all around great!

  11. elo says:

    He is my biggest Hollywood man crush. I love how smart and professional he seems and of course he happens to be very easy on the eyes.

  12. Lucy says:

    He’s awesome. Loved everything he had to say.

  13. Canoki says:

    He looks uncomfortable with all the glitter and make-up on. His eyes seem to have a bit of “Really?” to them.

  14. roxy750 says:

    Everyone loves him because he’s nice and funny. I wish he would stick with the acting and doing his job because I really don’t want to hear about his personal life….that goes with all celebrities. I don’t know them personally and everyone thinks they do bc what they say in interviews. Everyone feels a connection —nonsense. Frickon brilliant PR reps are—they mold these people into what you want them to be. Brilliant.. I don’t want to hear about peoples gay lifestyles or straight for that matter–there are smarter things to talk about but that’s my own opinion and I keep it to myself (besides me saying it now). I dig Patrick because he is a brilliant actor and he makes me laugh. Hands down most people agree. I leave it at that.

    • Renee says:

      This post was summarizing an interview that NPH a GAY actor did with OUT, which is a GAY magazine. If you have issues with his hearing about his sexuality and/or personal life then don’t click on links to stories about him and don’t read them. And if you really don’t want to hear about any actors personal life irrespective of their work then perhaps you might wish to refrain from frequenting gossip blogs.

  15. yoyo says:

    I don’t get the NPH love at all. I never got into the series he’s in (cheeseballs galore) but beyond that I find that his interviews always have a measure of shade/snarkiness towards others that is unwarranted considering that well he’s a sitcom actor, get over yourself seriously. He always sounds like he’s a bit too happy with himself and how smart he is and how much a craftsman he is at his work etc…yeah, don’t get it at all.