Kevin Spacey is (allegedly) gay. That’s the “rumor” that’s been going around for… God, I don’t even know how long. I think I first remember someone (my mother) saying it when Spacey took his mother as his date for the Oscars. My mom: “That’s how you know! When their mother is their date.” But seriously, the rumors have been around for a while, and at this point, it’s pretty much established that Kevin is a private man who enjoys the company of other men, but that he doesn’t want to talk about it publicly, or come out of his “glass closet” as they say in the gay community. Anyway, Spacey gave an interview to The Daily Beast (full piece here), and the (gay) interviewer kind of went after Spacey about his sexuality:
Oscar winner Kevin Spacey, long the topic of rumor and innuendo regarding his sexuality, spoke — or refused to speak — about whether or not he is gay, in a new interview with The Daily Beast.
The interviewer, Kevin Sessums, is openly gay, and said the community has long welcomed Spacey as one of them — but asks Spacey why he, a noted gay marriage advocate, has not come out and returned the favor.
“Look, I might have lived in England for the last several years but I’m still an American citizen and I have not given up my right to privacy,” Spacey says, trying to stray from the subject. But when Sessums says that he does not believe one’s sexuality was a private matter, Spacey gets even more defiant.
“People have different reasons for the way they live their lives. You cannot put everyone’s reasons in the same box. It’s just a line I’ve never crossed and never will,” he says. Later, he asserts that not revealing his sexuality publicly does not qualify as living a lie.
Still, Spacey possibly alludes to the answer, saying, “Look, at the end of the day people have to respect people’s differences. I am different than some people would like me to be.”
The interview wasn’t all about Spacey’s sexuality — in fact, the thrust of the talk was about his new movie, ‘Casino Jack,’ which opens on Friday. Based on the crimes of former Republican financier Jack Abramoff — with Spacey playing lead — it chronicles the rise and fall of GOP donors, aides and Congressmen, including former House Majority Leader Tom Delay.
[From HuffPo]
I usually don’t hold this opinion, but I think Spacey is completely correct. If he doesn’t want to talk about it, he doesn’t have to. He’s never been one of those people living a fake heterosexual life for his fans who might abandon him if they learned the truth, and he’s not part of some dangerous cult who thinks they can “cure” gayness through barley water and intense tin-can auditing (coughTravoltacough). So, in my mind, he’s not “lying”. He’s just not coming out and talking about his sexuality AT ALL. Would we yell at a straight person if they wanted to keep their sex life private? Nope.
But I will say this… the jig is up, Kevin Spacey. We know. And we don’t care, honestly. We just want you to come back and make some good movies.
Photos courtesy of WENN.
Well no of course he doesn’t have to talk about it, but those pictures of him hanging out with teenaged male Eastern European prostitutes while smoking pot are pretty amusing.
Yeah it’s really none of our beeswax who he sleeps with. He isn’t lying, isn’t funding some vast homophobic religion etc, etc.
I actually read some book about Katherine Hepburn that mentions a girlfriend of Kevin Spacey’s but that was in the 70’s or 80’s so who knows.
“Sessums says that he does not believe one’s sexuality was a private matter”
since when?
unless you’re starring in and selling a porn tape, your sexuality is nobody’s business but yours and the person you’re sexing with.
while I do think having more celebs (or public figures in general) coming out would lessen the stigma that a lot of society still has toward gay folks, I do also think it’s each person’s individual choice WHEN to come out.
my sister’s fiance was a actor in the ’90s (he was on All My Children and the movie Aireborne). He went to a party and Kevin Spacey tried to make out with him…..so yeah I think Kevin is pretty much out but just doesn’t want to do press about it.
I don’t think anyone owes an explanation or information about any aspect of their personal lives. Sexuality included. It is just none of anyone’s business.
Who he sleeps with is his business and he has a right to stay in the closet if he wants to.
That said, he’s a damn good actor and I loved him as Jack Vincennes in L.A. Confidential.
gay or not, i love spacey forever
A friend of mine works in the London theatre community (hasn’t worked with Spacey, but knows some of his colleagues). It’s openly known that he is completely out, just doesn’t do interviews about it. Good on him, say I.
I never heard that he was gay. Never cared either. I like him as an actor which is all that really matters. If he doesn’t want to talk about his sexuality GOOD! I’m tired of hearing about celebs sex lives anyhow. Can’t we keep some things private??
It’s about time Kevin. It’s not like films rely on your romantic good looks to cash in. Now if someone like Robert Pattinson came out, yes, that’s a disaster, but Kevin Spacey?
Meh.
I’m 100% with Spacey on this. Why do gay celebrities always have to be expected to be a “cause?” can’t they just live their lives like regular gay people get to do?
YOU GO KS!
What about his alleged baldness?
Since KS is a character actor (not a heart throb) anyway, why would it damage his career? I adore Rupert Everett and would watch him play anything; however, coming out reduced him to playing the villain in “Inspector Gadget”, etc.
When you see an elephant, it’s understood that’s what you’re seeing. You don’t need to issue a public statement “this is an elephant.”
My friend works in a pub in london where spacey is a regular. It is well known that he is gay, but I agree kaiser, it’s no one’s beeswax.
he is a great actor, and (supposedly) a nice enough man. I would be offended if someone stopped me in the street and demanded to know if I was gay or straight so I expect him to react in the same way.
I respect him for standing his ground…he shouldn’t be “bullied” into coming out by anyone.
It’s no one else’s business.
Interesting pics, as usual.
Kevin is a great actor and I always take a second look at whatever he’s in. He’s also one of my favorite gay guys being that if he is gay, he keeps it to himself and lives the life he wants.
Can’t say I blame him for wanting people to keep their nose out of his business. He’s living his life openly. He doesn’t have to say it. It is obvious. Of course I wish he would just because I wish everyone who wants to talk about it should feel comfortable in doing so. Him officially coming out might help the cause.
I personally don’t care if you come out of the closet. Its your business to do as you see fit. I do think it is a shame when someone is known for being gay and still can’t answer the question. It makes me feel as though they feel some type of shame and that is a bad thing.
lol , Colin Farrelle took his mom as a date to the Oscars , and you can call colin anything but gay
I completely agree it’s no one’s business, and no one should be forced to talk about anything publicly or become some champion for a cause if they’ve chosen to keep their private life private. It was incredibly rude of the interviewer to persist with it, and act as if KS is obligated to discuss it. He’s not. He never has, and has never tried to sell any other kind of image, so leave him alone.
I completely agree. He isn’t denying it. He’s been photographed in situations where it’s pretty obvious.
I don’t buy into this “glass house” crap. Some people just don’t want to discuss their personal life and that should be respected, especially if they aren’t really hiding it in the first place.
I don’t care if he’s gay, I wanna know why does he likes working with Kate Bosworth so much?
@normades….lol, good question.
Definitely a Kevin Spacey fan. I don’t care if he’s gay or straight. It’s no ones business (stupid interviewer, learn some etiquette) and he has every right to not talk about his personal everything.
Sessom’s is an idiot. I don’t need to know who is and isn’t gay in order to enjoy their performances. I respect Spacey for having the strength of character to simply shut the guy down and tell him essentially it is none of his business. Honestly, I just don’t care who sleeps with who as long as all are adults and willing.
My 2 fav KS flicks: Beyond the Sea (GREAT and Bobby Darin) and Pay It Forward (always makes me cry!)
Kat (#14) said:
“I would be offended if someone stopped me in the street and demanded to know if I was gay or straight so I expect him to react in the same way.”
That’s a really good way to put it. I agree.
Good actors, esp. character actors, often want to keep their private lives private so that they are a “blank slate” to their viewers. I.e., they can play a variety of roles without being associated with a celebrity persona. It’s always seemed to me that that’s what Spacey is trying to do.
“I adore Rupert Everett and would watch him play anything; however, coming out reduced him to playing the villain in ‘Inspector Gadget’” I don’t know about that. Rupert was well out when he starred in An Ideal Husband–and was quite attractive and believable as an enthusiastic ladies’ man.
Exactly.
With the rise of internet, 24 hour reporting, and “reality” shows, very few performers hold any sort of mystique.
I think we can all probably name at least one someone who has “turned us off” because we know ALLLL about who they date/marry, their private rants/text messages are made public, who they do or do not donate to/support, what they do or don’t eat, how/where/when their kids were conceived, public substance abuse problems in on a 24 hour loop, stupid “press conferences” about infidelity, sex tapes are sold, stylized pseudo-intellects are pontificating about some such, etc.
He’s not a famewhore and he’s not an activist. He earned and deserves respect, unlike most. Let someone else put themselves out there to be vilified or canonize, if they see fit.
ak138 and Sigh, I’ve been saying this on other posts about other actors, and I totally agree.
I do think it’s hard for me to focus on some characters because I know ALL ABOUT the person playing them and I see “THE ACTOR” up there and not the character. Their “true-life” persona outshines any acting ability they may have.
Which is (again) why I thought it was so brilliant of Tarantino to cast mostly Euro (unknown in US) actors in Basterds. Not knowing the actors playing the roles made the characters and story more believable. As opposed to Pitt, of whom I just thought “oh, isn’t that accent Pitt is doing funny”.
Cosign with Beth! Love him either way. **bows down to Kaiser Soze!**
I understand the natural curiosity about his gayness. I wonder myself. However, his decision to stay in the closet (if that’s indeed where he is) is not a crime. I think that people should have the right to be openly gay and I respect that as a straight woman. BUT, we have the right to keep our romantic lives to ourselves, regardless of the gender of the person we love. I love him as an actor and that won’t change. He’s not a bad gay for not wearing a rainbow and a matching “I’m Gay” shirt. He just wants privacy. Period.
I also thought the interviewer was quite ignorant here. If Spacey wants to talk about his sexuality, then it should be when he makes that decision, not some idiot interviewer looking to make headlines at his expense. Apart from it being no one else’s business, I would imagine what KS wants to avoid most is the intense media scrutiny he would get if he did discuss it. It would be mentioned forevermore in every single article & interview, taking precedence over his acting and directing work. And I really don’t think he sees an admission as something which would negatively impact upon his career, more his privacy. All he is doing is protecting his right to keep his private life private.
I don’t believe in “outing” people not only for privacy reasons but honestly, I don’t care! I don’t care who Kevin sleeps with. It doesn’t affect which movies I see.
Why do GAYS try to force other GAYS out?? I never understood that? I think he’s awesome and I could CARE LESS who he’s boning.
I love Spacey and it really doesnt matter who he sexes with.
He’s a great actor and deserves his privacy just as much as anyone else does.
I respect him for the way he handled himself in this interview.
How I Met Your Mother is one of my favourite tv shows, and NPH steals the show. He was openly living as a gay man and didn’t feel the need to come out in public, as he had already come out to his family, etc. It was only when a tabloid was going to do a “Shocker! NPH is gay!” story that he said anything. I don’t watch HIMYM and think gay guy playing straight, I think great actor.
Spacey is an incredible actor. If he’s out in his life but doesn’t want every interview to be about “how is it to be a gay man playing straight”, I understand. His life is his life and his craft is his craft.
I don’t care, but I will say this: Kevin, in my head, not only are you TOTALLY hetero, but you also have a thing for middle aged American housewives. *sigh*
another NOT SURPRISING gay spacey storey but my cousin worked at the old vic with him and he’s not in the closet at all. i don’t know why he doesn’t just say so in public but i agree that it’s his own business. everyone knows anyway.
Hee-hee, Kaiser, Gerard Butler’s mom was his date at the “Law Abiding Citizen” premiere in Glasgow!
(I think he also took his mom to one of the Lara Croft premieres!)
This has been not-news for years, and I think that people have the right to withhold whatever details about their private life that they want to. Kevin Spacey doesn’t want to talk about his sexuality. Ewan McGregor tries to avoid having his children photographed, and doesn’t feature them in his projects like Long Way Round. What’s the difference?
And I also don’t think that who you take to the Oscars is all that informative. Damon and Affleck took their mothers. Mira Sorvino took her father. It’s nice, no matter who you are.
This guy trying to “bully” Spacey out of the closet is no different than stupid Perez Hilton with Neil Patrick Harris and Clay Aiken….Just because you’re out of the closet doesn’t mean you have to bully everyone else into doing the same.
it’s a disaster if Robert Pattenson (sp?)is gay?
I see we have such a very long way to go.
By not coming out, he’s sending the message that his sexuality shouldn’t matter. I think that helps the cause rather than harms it.
Roma I hate to admit it but since NPH was “outed”, I haven’t watched the show the same way. My bias or homophobia prevents me from believing that the “character” is womanizer. The same thing happened with T. R. Knight on Grey’s Anatomy. I know this is my “issue” that I have to get over.
I agree with you 100% Kaiser.
@Kim… I get it. When you know for sure that the real person is gay and they are playing a straight character, it is a little distracting to get into the storyline. I dont care who is or who isnt gay (except Johnny Depp) but the contridiction… it just messes the whole show/movie for me.
I too am with Kevin. Sexual orientation, as well as physical health and religious/political preferences, is something that only the individual is entitled to disclose IF/WHEN s/he elects to. NOBODY can (or should) be outed by somebody else.
It really is his business. And honestly, I think it has more to do with him just wanting privacy in general about his life. He never talks about any aspects of his private life, ever.
And I agree with Praise. Knowing too much about an actor is distracting. They’d have to be exceptionally good to keep you from thinking about their sordid tabloid lives while watching a film with them in it.
Who cares if he’s gay or not? And just because he doesn’t want to discuss his PRIVATE life, which DOES include his sexuality if that’s what he wants, doesn’t mean he’s “lying,” when asked about it. It just means IT’S NONE OF ANYONE’S BUSINESS. I don’t believe he has to be some spokesperson for anything if he chooses not to be.
He’s an actor. That’s his JOB. He’s good at it and that’s all anyone should care about (if we’re paying money to see his “work”) especially those of us that do not know the man personally. Jesus. We don’t ask straight actors who they’re boning or pressure them to tell all. And the interviewer, who is gay, is all up in Kevin’s business, trying to out him? What the fuck is that about? Let KS live his personal life the way he wants to live it. Gah.
Kevin Spacey is too good of an actor to let all of his press be about his sexuality. He’s being smart about his career when he refuses to answer questions about his romantic life. Whether he is gay or straight doesn’t matter. Straight actors start talking about their relationships when they don’t have the talent to keep the public interested with just their work. Kevin Spacey has talent.
But when Sessums says that he does not believe one’s sexuality was a private matter, Spacey gets even more defiant.
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Oh f**k off Sessums. I don’t think Spacey is in any closet. Just because you don’t announce something to the world doesn’t mean you’re in the closet. I don’t greet everyone with “Hi, I’m Liana and I’m a raging heterosexual.”
I think Kevin is classy and preserving some of the mystique that movie stars used to have before the age of blogs, twitter and facebook. Why does the public need to know every detail of his life? They don’t. Only what he choose to show them through his performances. In fact – I don’t even want to know anything about his personal life. My life was much easier when I thought Mel Gibson was a stand-up guy. 🙁
Johnny Depp’s Girl: When you know for sure that the real person is gay and they are playing a straight character, it is a little distracting to get into the storyline. I dont care who is or who isnt gay (except Johnny Depp) but the contridiction… it just messes the whole show/movie for me.
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That’s just ridiculous. The guy’s an actor, for Christ’s sake. He can be convincing in any role he plays. He does macho bad guy roles very well. He was great as Kaiser Soze and as Lex Luthor in the last Superman. In fact, I thought he did Luthor better than Gene Hackman. Hackman played the part for laughs but Spacey was really scary.
I am a big Kevin Spacey fan (who’s seen “Midnight in the Garden of Good and Evil” where KS plays a gay man with Jude Law as his lover?) but if Kevin Spacey was an advocate of anti-gay Scientology I would be all on his case for him to come out; but he’s not, so I say it’s his business.
It’s no one’s business who *you* sleep with, so why do others think it’s their business who people in the public eye sleep with?
It’s pathetic.
Wow,looks like the interviewer was a gay bully. Didn’t know they existed. Some guys struggle enough with it and I can’t stand when people put pressure to answer to them,it’s so tacky,cold and rude.
“But when Sessums says that he does not believe one’s sexuality was a private matter…”
Oh that made me see red. Is he kidding me with that sh*t. Of course one’s sexuality is a private matter. Grrr hate, hate people who are always trying to force other people to come out. Why should he talk about? The people who know him, know whether he’s gay or not. Why does he have to make a big public announcement? Oh and I’m tired of the because he’s a celebrity and he may be able to empower other gays argument. It should be his choice. Becoming a celebrity does not mean you should forfeit your right to privacy, no matter the cause.
Totally agree. He’s not perpetuating a lie or funding a cult that denies homosexuality thus harming gay people, he’s just choosing to keep his private life private. And since his profession relies on his ability to believed as various characters it makes professional sense.
I think it is so funny seeing all these people who say they have a friend/relative who know he him and he is openly gay.
I actually DO know someone who dated him for a time and she was not a guy. He doesn’t mind all the gay rubbish because firstly it takes the heat off his female friends, even when he is photographed and they are there, they walk slightly away from him and never get in the shot, never get questioned or ridiculed.
A gentleman does not tell the world who he is sleeping with. And Kevin is a real gentleman.
He has also dated April Winchell and Diane Dreyer
On another note, the journalist also says “But I stopped being an actor after I left Juilliard because I couldn’t live a lie to enable myself to pretend.”
Sure you did! Because no one ever gets a job in acting when they are openly gay! Ha ha, someone better tell Nathan Lane to stop being so successful on Broadway.
And Kevin was going to tell him “off the record” he was gay! LOL
Me thinks someone wrote a controversial piece which no one would bother to refute to get some recognition for himself…. And it worked!
Kevon Spacey is my new hero. I am personnally getting nauseous from the the gay overload in the media, magazines and tv shows. I am gay and have been with my partner for 32 years and we do enjoy seeing homosexuals finally incorporated into tv shows, movies and articles. After all it is a more accurate reflection of life. However, even with that being true, I feel the whole gay thing has gone from one extreme to the other. We have lived our lives open in a way that was not a lie but never felt the need to make some big announcement. After all, isn’t that the whole point? For everyone to be treated the same. What the interviewer was doing to Spacey would never happen if he was not trying to define Spacey as a GAY actor. Kevin Spacey wants to be known as an actor….period. And a good one at that. I guess my main point is…If you’re gay…get over it. It’s no big deal.