In 2021, Russell T Davies asserted that only gay actors should play gay roles – a credo adhered to when casting hit drama It’s a Sin. However, the actor Eddie Redmayne expressed regret at accepting the role of a trans woman in Tom Hooper’s 2015 film A Danish Girl, describing his participation as “a mistake” and the part as one he “wouldn’t take on now”. Meanwhile, Timothée Chalamet and Armie Hammer enjoyed substantial acclaim for their roles in Call Me By Your Name, as did Kate Winslet and Saoirse Ronan for period romance Ammonite. However, Hanks’s statement was met with scepticism online, with many saying that Bradley Cooper is currently shooting a biopic of Leonard Bernstein, which has already attracted Oscar buzz, and Ewan McGregor recently won an Emmy for playing Halston. Do I sound like I’m preaching? I don’t mean to.” Hanks continued: “It’s not a crime, it’s not boohoo, that someone would say we are going to demand more of a movie in the modern realm of authenticity. We’re beyond that now, and I don’t think people would accept the inauthenticity of a straight guy playing a gay guy.” One of the reasons people weren’t afraid of that movie is that I was playing a gay man. The whole point of Philadelphia was don’t be afraid.
“Let’s address ‘Could a straight man do what I did in Philadelphia now?’” said Hanks.
