Daniel Radcliffe says it’s ‘sad’ gay actors are still forced to stay in the closet

The Imperium star says Hollywood still typecasts openly gay actors.

Daniel Radcliffe has given his thoughts on why so few Hollywood actors have come out as gay – saying he thinks it’s “sad” that film bosses still typecast LGBT stars.

Appearing on The Victoria Derbyshire Show earlier today, Radcliffe was asked by the host why he thought so few A-List actors have made the decision to come out.

“I suppose because, then people just want to cast you as gay,” he said.

“Rather than the lead role, whose married with children or whatever?” Derbyshire continued.

“Yeah, often,” Radcliffe responded. “I mean, there’s very few (gay actors) – well, Neil Patrick Harris has made a career out of playing the the straightest guy on television, which is fantastic.

“But in film, yeah, it’s sad – because, again, we’re in this industry that likes to see itself as being totally progressive and liberal, but there is a line where people go, ‘oh no, people won’t buy him as straight anymore.’”

“They’ll be typecast as the gay best friend,” Derbyshire adds, to which Radcliffe nodded in agreement.

The Harry Potter actor was also asked by Derbyshire if he thought Hollywood was racist – to which he hesitantly answered “yes” – and about sexism with the film industry.

The actor appeared on the show to discuss his upcoming film, Imperium – in which he portrays an undercover neo-Nazi.

Set for UK release this week, the film is co-written by former FBI agent Michael German, who in real life spent more than a decade inside the white supremacist movement.

A strong supporter of LGBT rights, Radcliffe joked previously of Google’s autocomplete searches for him: “Daniel Radcliffe alcoholic. Daniel Radcliffe gay. Daniel Radcliffe girlfriend.”

“If people are speculating about your sexuality, then you’re doing OK,” he said.

Watch a trailer for Imperium below:

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