Below is a link to the actual interview
[quote]Time for Ammonite, then. Winslet’s Anning has a lover, Charlotte, played by Saoirse Ronan. “A conversation about straight actors in gay roles is incredibly important,” Winslet says and, about 40 minutes later, we move on to a different conversation. “I hope there will come a time when it is automatic that [gay] actors get those parts and you wouldn’t have to put punchy film stars in to get it made.”
[quote]So the idea is that by casting Winslet and Ronan — 11 Oscar nods between them — the film paves the way for more same-sex stories, this time with same-sex actors? Winslet nods. “We could have had a conversation about how I feel about playing a lesbian and possibly taking that role from somebody,” she says, “but I’m done with not being honest about what my real opinions are, and I know the part was never offered to anybody else. In taking this part I had an opportunity to bring an LGBTQ story into living rooms.”
[quote]”But,” she continues, [bold]”I cannot tell you the number of young actors I know — some well known, some starting out — who are terrified their sexuality will be revealed and that it will stand in the way of their being cast in straight roles. Now that’s f***ed up.” At this she jabs a stripy pencil at the screen. “I’m telling you. A well-known actor has just got an American agent and the agent said, ‘I understand you are bisexual. I wouldn’t publicise that.’ I can think of at least four actors absolutely hiding their sexuality. It’s painful. Because they fear being found out. And that’s what they say. ‘I don’t want to be found out.’ ” Are we talking about men or women? “Men more than anything. It’s bad news.”[/bold]
[quote]When Winslet was 17 she was cast in Heavenly Creatures. She cannot imagine what her perception of the industry would have been had Peter Jackson asked to know her sexuality. If she had had to share private information about her preferences and experiences publicly, that may have affected her career. She wonders aloud if she would have been cast in Titanic.
[quote]That was 28 years ago — Winslet is 45. Surely the next generation, into gender fluidity more than ever before, will not stand for the idea that sexuality is a barrier to a role? “But Hollywood has to drop that dated crap of, ‘Can he play straight because, apparently, he’s gay?’” she says. “That should be almost illegal. You would not believe how widespread it is. And it can’t just be distilled to the question about gay actors playing gay parts. Because actors, in some cases, are choosing not to come out for personal reasons. And it’s nobody’s business. Perhaps privacy. Perhaps conditioning and shame.”
[quote]So what could make the industry less discriminating? “It takes more people to speak the way I am,” she says. “People are afraid because we live in a world where political correctness is dictating people’s willingness to be upfront. We live in a finger-pointing culture. And I definitely feel that holding myself accountable, as I have done, for having worked with Woody [Allen, for Wonder Wheel] and Roman [Polanski, for Carnage] has helped me feel like I am allowed to have a voice again. For a number of years it wasn’t right for me to speak like this because there would be too many people getting ready with their big pointy fingers. I don’t intend to browbeat or take on Hollywood. We’re just talking about young actors who might be considering joining this profession, and finding a way to make it more open. For there to be less judgment, discrimination and homophobia.”
[quote]So there needs to be a #MeToo moment for attitudes towards the LGBTQ community in Hollywood? She nods. “It needs its own movement.”
