During the press tour for his latest film, "The Martian," actor Matt Damon found himself repeatedly putting his foot in his mouth. His string of unfortunate statements, including talking over a black, female filmmaker about diversity in the film industry, culminated in his comments to the Guardian about being gay in Hollywood.
He told the publication that, while he believes it is difficult to be an out actor, actors should share as little about their personal life as possible—including their sexuality.
"Whether you’re straight or gay, people shouldn’t know anything about your sexuality because that’s one of the mysteries that you should be able to play,” Damon said.
Now, I find it hard to believe that Damon meant to come across as, at best, insensitive, or, at worst, homophobic. With all the progress that has been made in this country, only a bigoted moron (read: not a publicist-controlled, media trained, A-list celebrity) could consciously say something openly offensive to the LGBT community.
That doesn't change the fact that he did come across as insensitive and, depending on who you ask, possibly homophobic.
Damon tried (but mostly failed) to make amends in an interview with Ellen DeGeneres. He told her that "actors are more effective when they’re a mystery. Right? And somebody picked it up and said I said gay actors should get back in the closet." He also said that he was hurt by the perception of his words.
Yes, I'm sure you were hurt, Matt. But many more people were likely hurt by your lack of thoughtfulness.
I do understand what he was trying to say, in a way. An actor's believability depends heavily on how well they disappear into a role. Knowing a lot about an actor's real life can, at times, be distracting when watching a film in which that actor is supposed to play against type.
However, I wouldn't consider seeing an openly gay actor play straight, nor its much more common inverse, distracting in any way. Watching Lindsay Lohan play a rehab therapist or Brad Pitt play a man who hates children would be distracting. Damon himself played a gay man in HBO's "Behind the Candelabra" a few years ago—did he think that audience's knowledge that he was straight would distract them?
Probably not. That idea of his personal life overshadowing his acting career is one he has never had to worry about. Talking about his wife and children during an interview or on the red carpet won't spawn headlines like the ones that would come from an out actor discussing his husband.
Damon's mentions of his wife, Luciana, and four daughters earlier in his interview with the Guardian sets a double standard when coupled with his comments. He is not maintaining a sense of "mystery" about his personal life, so why does he think gay actors should?
"The Martian" opened in theaters this weekend. It's already gotten positive reviews from critics, and, by the time you're reading this, it's probably made a boatload of money. With that, these comments will quietly be forgotten. Soon, another public figure's verbal misstep will fan the flames of public "outrage."
We get so worked up about insensitive, off-the-cuff comments from people we pay to entertain us that we're not left with enough energy to be outraged at the truly outrageous. We go after Matt Damon with proverbial pitchforks for saying something dumb, but we neglect to have conversations about the struggles for equality that LGBT individuals face on a daily basis—and isn't that the real problem?
