Todd Holland says Gay Actors Should Stay Closeted, then Apologies

tjpeople

Site Administrator
Staff member
Front Page Post

Todd-Holland-2009-MITMVC.jpg


Todd Holland one of the main Malcolm in the Middle producers & directors caused quite a bit of controversy last month when he spoke on the Taking It to the Streets: LGBT Directors Get Political panel, sponsored by Outfest, a leading gay and lesbian film festival.

"my whole thing about being political is kissing my husband at the Emmys" and "just living honestly" was also a "political thing." Later in the discussion Todd, citing the extremely competitive nature of the entertainment business, said that when young, gay actors ask for his advice on whether or not they should come out in Hollywood, "I say, Stay in the closet."
Todd's advise is based on personal experience, he came out later in life but his brother did so at a younger age and their parents reacted badly. However there was great shock and concern about his viewpoint.

A few days later Holland released a public apology through Gay and Lesbian Alliance Against Defamation (GLAAD)

"As an openly gay man in Hollywood, I know firsthand the tremendous challenges that people throughout the industry face in terms of being open about who they are. For people who know me, they know that I believe it's important for people to live openly and authentically, and I am sorry for my poorly chosen words at Outfest. At the end of the day, I hope my comments do not prevent us from having honest, thoughtful conversations about the significant barriers that make being an out actor in Hollywood an ongoing obstacle."
However he does not say he will stop advising young gay actors to stay closeted. Being young and gay myself I have a little insight into this however I'm certainly no Hollywood actor. Coming out should be a personal choice and done when people are ready, however if the people around you or the industry you work in won't accept you, leave, its their loss.

Source: laweekly.com
 
Last edited:

Richiepiep

Administrator
Thanks a lot for finding and posting that! Yes, I knew that Todd Holland was openly gay, but I think it's strange that in a community as politically liberal (in general) as Hollywood, it's still considered box office poison to take your same-sex lover to a red carpet event and be seen and photographed that way. And that some showbiz people still resort to fake straight marriages, the way that Rock Hudson and others were forced to do in the Fifties, and some may say which is what Elton John did as late as the Eighties.

Apparently, pressure from the industry to 'play it straight' is still so strong that even someone like Todd feels he has to advise young gay actors against coming out. It only feeds the terrible rumour mongering you see on almost every single IMDB board about a young actor: I heard he's gay, he's in a relationship with this guy X, he was seen in a gay bar etcetera. It's what we see happening with Justin Berfield all the time, but even Frankie Muniz was not exempt from this.

It's a really crazy situation in this day and age, and I hope it's going to change soon!

Rich
 

Richiepiep

Administrator
For your information, Todd Holland is not just any old 'Malcolm' producer/director. He was personally chosen by series creator Linwood Boomer to be the central director of the series, having been at the helm of episodes of lots of cult favourites like Max Headroom, Twin Peaks, Eerie Indiana, My So-Called Life and The Larry Sanders Show, each of which were seen as groundbreaking, very high-quality programs.

Rich
 

MalcolmFun

New member
It is ridiculous that Todd Holland would have to apologize to them for differing with their political and ideological agenda. Sounds like a thuggish close minded political organization that makes him publicly concede to what he obviously does not actually believe. If they want to know why it is poison to be known as gay, maybe it is because of the political affiliations of groups like this that obviously has no problem throwing its own "constituents" under the bus.
 

Richiepiep

Administrator
It is ridiculous that Todd Holland would have to apologize to them for differing with their political and ideological agenda. Sounds like a thuggish close minded political organization that makes him publicly concede to what he obviously does not actually believe. If they want to know why it is poison to be known as gay, maybe it is because of the political affiliations of groups like this that obviously has no problem throwing its own "constituents" under the bus.

It is true that gay magazines like "The Advocate" forced closeted gays to 'out' themselves. It's a practice I hate, because it shouldn't be anyone's business. The problem is that while straights are normally happy to announce marriages and appear with spouses, nearly all Hollywood gays are strangely secretive, skirting the issue, pretending to be looking out for the perfect opposite-sex partners, even arranging fake escorts and marriages etc.

There's something extremely twisted about it, which brings sleazy and even well-meaning press to act like extortioners. I don't agree with that, but I see where it's coming from. If someone is known to be gay by all Hollywood insiders, yet wilfully keeps up this image of a ladies' man in every interview, I guess you could say you're asking for it.

Again, not that I would force anyone, but why not act cool and casual about it? I know, there's a lot of money involved, which makes it far more than a personal issue. But living a lie until you die, well, that's not something that should be the norm.

To me, it's a bit like a black actress trying to look as white as she can to be acceptable to the general public.

Rich
 

Wemboy

New member
Interesting post, thanks TJ. I didn't even know he was gay. It's a shame in my opinion that he's been forced to apologise, when all he's really done his speak his opinion and try to expose the truth about being gay in the entertainment industry. Everybody sees Hollywood and the indusry in general as liberal and assumes that people wouldn't face any discrimination, yet they don't seem to question why there are so few openly gay people in the industry.

I would always say that from a personal perspective it is better to be out of the closet than in it, and I don't think that personal happiness can be found unless you are ready to be honest about who you are to yourself, and the people around you. But Todd Holland is talking from the perspective of someone's career, rather than their personal life, and there is always some degree of separation between the two. So if from his personal experience he thinks it is better to keep things private then he has the right to say that, and to give that advice to young people who ask him his opinion. He certainly shouldn't be shouted down for expressing his views.

Maybe it would be better if people actually addressed the issue, and tackled the reasons why Holland would hold this opinion. It doesn't help anyone if people are just expected to keep quiet about problems and pretend they aren't there.
 

Seal87

New member
That's really weird. I wouldn't think being openly gay would be problematical at all in the entertainment industry, unless the people who run it started to care about actual public opinion. It seems that if there was a time to come out of the closet, it would be when the actor is about to get forgotten in the industry, and then put the wind back in the sails. Otherwise, personal life should be a non-issue and an actor could get work based on their personal merits and quality of work.
 

Richiepiep

Administrator
That's really weird. I wouldn't think being openly gay would be problematical at all in the entertainment industry, unless the people who run it started to care about actual public opinion. It seems that if there was a time to come out of the closet, it would be when the actor is about to get forgotten in the industry, and then put the wind back in the sails. Otherwise, personal life should be a non-issue and an actor could get work based on their personal merits and quality of work.

Yes, it's very weird, what with Hollywood generally being seen as very liberal. Actually, records have indicated that even lots of unequivocally straight actors/actresses who played gay parts have had difficulty getting major roles afterwards!

I think there are two reasons for that: the cost of making a movie and the dominant demographics of movie audiences, mostly American teenagers, who, even if gay, feel uneasy about going to such movies and asking others out to come along with them. The millions of dollars involved in making movies, unlike, let's say, off-Broadway plays and stand-up comedy, mostly dictate the appeal is a broad as possible, which is also why it took so long to have Afro-Americans star as leading actors in roles that were not primarily about racial issues, and why, I guess, leading actresses still have to look cookie-cutter pretty, even more so than a few decades ago, even if not really suitable for a role, or being mediocre actresses.

Food for thought!

Rich
 
Last edited:

Gouki

New member
Be interesting to see which Hollywood gossip blogs/tabloids use this statement as 'more' proof that Berfield is gay, and just won't admit it publicly.
 

Richiepiep

Administrator
Justin means people like Jonathan Jaxson, whose gossip blog entry about Justin was withdrawn.

As I've said, famous people should not try to hide their orientation if it's firmly established, and as if it's something to be ashamed of, but it's their own decision, so I'm against this business of forcibly outing and obsessive gossiping. I've never contributed to any boards trying to establish 'what' Justin was and 'how' we should interpret it and 'why'.

There have been ridiculous cases as the blogs by some attention-hungry loony about the supposed love affairs of Hayden Christensen, the likes of which aren't doing anyone a favour.

Rich
 

Gouki

New member
Well. While I tend to not take anything gossip blogs or magazines say seriously and think 98% of the stuff is bullshit, colour me surprised by that Twitter update.

It's a shame he had to set the record straight, so to speak, though.
 
Last edited:
Top