WATCH: Rock Hudson’s former boyfriends & colleagues reflect on the life of the closeted movie star
All That Heaven Allows, epic Westerns like Giant, beloved rom-coms like Pillow Talk, or tense thrillers like Seconds, he was an actor who could do it all.
He was one of the brightest stars to ever grace the silver screen—an icon that women wanted to be with and men wanted to be.He was also deeply closeted.Yes, for all the fame and success, Hudson’s story is also one of pain, shame, and fear.
He was a gay man, but forced to live a double life. It wasn’t until he died from AIDS in 1985 that the wider world knew about his truth.Everyone knows Rock Hudson, Movie Star—but who was he, really?
And what did it take for one of the most famous men in America to live a life in secret? These questions are at the heart of the eye-opening new documentary Rock Hudson: All That Heaven Allowed, from filmmaker Stephen Kijak (We Are X, the LGBTQ+ history docuseries Equal).Through archival footage, film clips, and interviews with those that knew Hudson personally, the doc aims to paint a full portrait of a man we thought we all knew, offering glimpses into his world when the cameras weren’t rolling.His public image was one of careful construction—he’s often considered to be one of the last great stars of the Old Hollywood studio system—with every aspect of his so-called “private life” built by others.
