Gina Gershon says her agents warned her against going gay-for-pay in this ’90s cult classic
the Cristal Conners in Showgirls, the camp classic to end all camp classics. And that alone should qualify her for some sort of honorary GLAAD award, right?And then who could forget Gershon in the sapphic, S&M-friendly crime thriller Bound?
Co-starring the great Jennifer Tilly, the ’90s flick is what put filmmakers Lana and Lilly Wachowski on the map and paved the way for The Matrix—which of course redefined the modern blockbuster.Subscribe to our newsletter for your front-row seat to all things entertainment with a sprinkle of everything else queer.In other words, without Gina Gershon in Bound, who knows?
The entire course of cinema history could’ve been drastically different. And it almost didn’t happen—that is, if Gershon’s homophobic agents had their way.In the most recent episode of The Hollywood Reporter‘s It Happened In Hollywood podcast, Gershon and Tilly reunited to reflect on the legacy, which was released nearly 28 years ago and is still finding new fans today, especially among the LGBTQ+ community.In the 1996 film, Gershon plays lesbian ex-con Corky, who begins a passionate affair with Violet (Tilly), and together the pair hatch a plan to steal mob money and pin the blame on Violet’s violent criminal boyfriend Caesar (Joe Pantoliano).
It’s a blast, and if you haven’t watched it yet… what’re you waiting for?Anyway, as Gershon reveals on the podcast, she was super excited when the opportunity to play Corky came her way, but her agents at the time advised her against taking on an openly queer role.“It was a great script and I could tell they were incredible directors,” the actress shares, “but my agents were like, ‘We will not let you do this movie.
