Rob Williams Plays Conflicted Gay Man One of His Last Films

Contents:

• 25 YEARS AGO, GAY FAI JT WEREN'T TALKED ABOUT. THEN 'THE BIRDGE' H THE SCREEN
• NATHAN LANE: ROB WILLIAMS ‘PROTECTED ME’ FROM COMG OUT AS GAY ON ‘OPRAH’ 1996 BEE ‘HE WAS A SAT’
• RT PEACE, ROB WILLIAMS, YOU WERE TLY A GAY IN
• ROB WILLIAMS: 'I'M NOT GAY'
• ROB WILLIAMS TALKS PLAYG GAY MAN GRAPPLG WH SEXUALY ONE OF HIS FAL FILMS, BOULEVARD: “IT WAS POWERFUL TO DO”
• ROBBIE WILLIAMS SAYS HE ED TO INTIFY AS ‘SOMEWHAT GAY’ BUT ‘JT N’T DO THE CK’
• WATCH ROB WILLIAMS HIS FAL FILM, STARS AS A CLOSETED GAY MAN

25 YEARS AGO, GAY FAI JT WEREN'T TALKED ABOUT. THEN 'THE BIRDGE' H THE SCREEN

This week marks the 25th anniversary of "The Birdge, " the smash h directed by Mike Nichols wh a screenplay by Elae May, starrg Rob Williams, Nathan Lane, Gene Hackman, Dianne Wit, Hank Azaria, Dan Futterman and Calista years ago, gay marriage was not only illegal, was banned most stat. But on March 8, 1996, dienc flocked to see somethg unual movie theaters: a lighthearted movie where openly gay men were the hero and a fay wh gay parents was lovg, happy and film not only gave Lane, Flockhart and Azaria their first big Hollywood breaks,  may have helped make mastream the ia of a non-heterosexual plot of "The Birdge" is simple.

But wh a few years after "The Birdge" there was "In & Out, " "Will & Grace, " "Queer Eye for the Straight Guy, " "The L Word, " "Queer as Folk, " "Brokeback Mounta, " "Buffy the Vampire Slayer" and more, all brgg more gay people to mastream entertament. "When me out, the gay prs was very hard on , " said Lane, who had e out to iends and fay as gay his 20s but had not ma public at the time of the movie, even duckg Oprah's qutns about durg an for the most part "The Birdge" was well-received for s portrayals for a lovg gay fay.

The Gay & Lbian Alliance Agast Defamatn (GLAAD) said, "We have seen so many films wh very one-dimensnal stereotypil characters. Hank Azaria worried about his portrayal of Agador"I thk whenever you have straight or gay actors portrayg gays a humoro way, you are makg fun of what you also are treatg lovgly at the same time, " Azaria said an terview wh The Daily News. I certaly n unrstand gay or Lat people havg a problem wh what I did… but I felt was thentic s own way.

NATHAN LANE: ROB WILLIAMS ‘PROTECTED ME’ FROM COMG OUT AS GAY ON ‘OPRAH’ 1996 BEE ‘HE WAS A SAT’

3 ln on s openg weekend, the hight-grossg openg of a movie wh openly gay lead characters until Sascha Baron Cohen's "Bno" 2009, and stayed at #1 for four total box office for "The Birdge" was over $185 ln worldwi, makg Mike Nichols' most fancially succsful movie.

While he nied mours about beg gay, he had no qualms about discsg the sexualy of his pet pug. He said: “I also have a gay rcue pug lled Leonard. Williams worked alongsi out gay actor Harvey Fierste, who played Daniel Hillard’s brother and make-up artist Frank.

RT PEACE, ROB WILLIAMS, YOU WERE TLY A GAY IN

Playg the openly gay and Jewish owner of a drag baret, he nonted the issu of homophobia far before mastream media ught on. He said: “If I n e my celebry stat to draw people to a movie theatre to see me perform as an admirable gay man and thereby make them a ltle most posive about gay people, why wouldn’t I do ?

ROB WILLIAMS: 'I'M NOT GAY'

The Birdge follows a gay uple, whose son is marryg the dghter of an ultra-nservative Republin US senator. Their out gay hoekeeper, Agador, tak on the persona of Spartac, a Greek straight manservant.

ROB WILLIAMS TALKS PLAYG GAY MAN GRAPPLG WH SEXUALY ONE OF HIS FAL FILMS, BOULEVARD: “IT WAS POWERFUL TO DO”

Wily released July 2015, Williams stars as Nolan Mack, a suburban 60-year-old banker g to terms wh his homosexualy. He said: “[It’s] a guy who falls love wh a gay prostute, basilly out. Nathan Lane revealed on “Sunday Today” that Rob Williams once protected him om g out as gay agast his will on natnal televisn.

ROBBIE WILLIAMS SAYS HE ED TO INTIFY AS ‘SOMEWHAT GAY’ BUT ‘JT N’T DO THE CK’

The year was 1996 and Lane and Williams were on their prs tour for Mike Nichols’ “The Birdge, ” which they play a gay uple tryg to marry off their son to a nservative uple’s dghter. Lane was nervo about dog an terview on “The Oprah Wey Show” as “The Birdge” was one of his first major film rol, and he did not want to e out publicly as gay at the time.

“And I certaly wasn’t ready to go om table-to-table and tell them all I was gay.

Of urse, Lane knew that playg a gay character the film would make discsg his sexualy real life “sort of unavoidable, ” but he still wasn’t ready to do so.

WATCH ROB WILLIAMS HIS FAL FILM, STARS AS A CLOSETED GAY MAN

I’m not prepared to discs that I’m gay on natnal televisn.

“Now you have to make a public statement about — I was terrified… It’s great that everyone now feels fortable but homophobia is alive and well and there are plenty of gay people who are still hidg. In the movie The Birdge, Williams portrayed the gay dad alg wh a hetero son, as well as the owner of a drag baret and same-sex lover of s star drag queen performer.