'Downton Abbey' Actor Says Gay Role Hurt His Career — But Is He Right?

Contents:

• DOWNTON ABBEY'S THOMAS BARROW AND THE FUTURE OF THE GAY PAST
• DOWNTON ABBEY ACTOR SAYS GAY ROLE HURT HIS CAREER — BUT IS HE RIGHT?
• ‘DOWNTON ABBEY’ DIRECTOR DISCS THE REALI OF CRAFTG A 1920S CLOSETED GAY ROMANCE
• DOWNTOWN ABBEY: THE NEW ERA – EVERYONE’S FAVORE GAY CHARACTER RETURNS
• DOWNTON ABBEY’S ROB JAM-COLLIER REVEALS REACTN TO ‘HORRIFIC’ GAY STORYLE
• ‘DOWNTON ABBEY’ ACTOR SAYS PLAYG A GAY CHARACTER HAS LEFT HIM “TYPEST”
• THE ‘DOWNTON ABBEY’ MOVIE’S GAY STORYLE ALMOST HAD A DARKER ENDG
• DOWNTON ABBEY'S CREEPY GAY SECRET
• WHICH DOWNTON ABBEY ACTORS ARE GAY?
• THE DIRECTOR OF “DOWNTON ABBEY” OPENED UP ABOUT THE MOVIE’S TOUCHG GAY STORYLE
• DOWNTON ABBEY STAR MOVED BY GAY STORYLE NEW MOVIE
• DOWNTON ABBEY'STHOMAS AT A GAY BAR WH THE DOWAGER? IT COULD HAPPEN

DOWNTON ABBEY'S THOMAS BARROW AND THE FUTURE OF THE GAY PAST

Thomas Barrow (Rob Jam-Collier)—former footman, would-be blackmailer, and early morn homosexual everyman—is now head butler on staff, givg him ample opportuny to teract wh the visg stars, and particular, wh the bonair Guy Dexter (Domic Wt).

DOWNTON ABBEY ACTOR SAYS GAY ROLE HURT HIS CAREER — BUT IS HE RIGHT?

Is Thomas an accurate unveilg of historil homosexualy, hidn but fully formed, jt wag for to notice his existence? Hello to the future of the gay past.

In the film, dienc will see Barrow the ntext of a wir gay world for the first time: visg a secret gay bar, dodgg police harassment, and possibly even fdg love. "I thk one of the thgs that Downton Abbey don’t get right is that actually a great al more of those young men who were service were homosexual. Barrow is stantly regnizable as a morn gay man, even if he never que those words.

‘DOWNTON ABBEY’ DIRECTOR DISCS THE REALI OF CRAFTG A 1920S CLOSETED GAY ROMANCE

Gooch//Getty ImagOn the one hand, this feels like an elaboratn of that famo gay liberatn slogan “we are everywhere, ” expandg to be “we were everywhere” also. On the other hand, seems to remove sexualy om the doma of history entirely, suggtg that the experience of beg gay has always been the same, no matter the place or perd. While everyone else the show be, Barrow already qutn for queer Downton Abbey fans, then, is this: Is Thomas an accurate unveilg of historil homosexualy, hidn but fully formed, jt wag for to notice his existence?

Or is he a backward projectn of our current ia of what means to be gay, an anachronism disguised as a revelatn? Like Thomas Barrow, Alec Scudr seems preternaturally gay, fully aware of his sexual sir, that they are exclively for men, and that they mark him, irrevobly, as a different sort of person. In the post-Edwardian perd, upper class men were more likely to already unrstand the world terms of heterosexuals and homosexuals, wh a bright and absolute le dividg the two.

DOWNTOWN ABBEY: THE NEW ERA – EVERYONE’S FAVORE GAY CHARACTER RETURNS

But whereas Scudr and Barrow seemed to thk of themselv as gay, el-Adl experienced his sire for men differently. Increasgly, sexologists, policians, and wrers began to promulgate the ia that the behavrs were signifiers of homosexualy, to be surveilled and curtailed.

DOWNTON ABBEY’S ROB JAM-COLLIER REVEALS REACTN TO ‘HORRIFIC’ GAY STORYLE

Compton Mackenzie, pictured send om the left the ont row, wrote several works about gay men.

‘DOWNTON ABBEY’ ACTOR SAYS PLAYG A GAY CHARACTER HAS LEFT HIM “TYPEST”

BettmannA workg class man like Thomas Barrow, livg the untrysi, was unlikely to have accs to this kd of rmatn about gay inty. As s passed, the neat fictn of bary sexualy beme broadly acknowledged “tth, ” leavg ls and ls space for middle-dwellg, workg-class men like Buckgham and an earlier and earlier age, people would be tght— streets as much as schools—that homosexuals existed, that they were unlike other men, and that any apparent “middle ground” was actually a slippery slope head straight to hell. Barrow might have been an implsible outlier at the begng of the show 1912, but by the 1950s, workg class men who intified as homosexual were throngg the streets of London.

THE ‘DOWNTON ABBEY’ MOVIE’S GAY STORYLE ALMOST HAD A DARKER ENDG

Robert Jam-Collier is known ternatnally for his role as Thomas Barrow, the v gay unrbutler who brought trigue to the halls of Downton the perd drama, Barrow hid his sexual orientatn for fear would hurt his reer. And the straight actor who portrays him, Jam-Collier, believ this character's inty may have had nsequenc the morn-day real world as, an terview wh Rad Tim, said his renown for playg a gay role hred his chanc Hollywood. N intify que easily wh the qutsential English gent and English lady, whereas a nrotic, dark, gay character like Thomas is a hard thg to put to the Amerin market.

"Bee Thomas Barrow is gay and is, sentially, the bad guy for much of the show, a lot of people wh the dtry n only see you as that. He received offers for gay rol the theater world, which he refed bee he "really wanted to show somethg different.

DOWNTON ABBEY'S CREEPY GAY SECRET

" He is now set to appear the upg horror movie The Rual, one of his first major parts sce Jam-Collier did enunter hurdl Hollywood for playg a gay role, his experience would be an exceptn -- at least morn tim. There are straight actors who have turned down gay rol for var reasons, cludg a fear would lim future opportuni. Will Smh said he limed the physily of his gay role Six Degre of Separatn, on a warng om Denzel Washgton, who said, "You n act all you want, but don't do any physil scen....

"But overall, Hollywood is full of straight actors who have won acclaim, awards, and a uful reer after playg gay rol. It seemed that was Thomas’ bt chance at happs as a closeted gay man 1920s England. After all, he hadn’t had much luck love the past, and homosexualy was emed a crime at the time.

Left to his own vic, Thomas starts hangg out wh one of the royal servants and eventually stumbl upon an unrground gay nightclub full of men dancg, lghg, and drkg. “In pictg that world, that gatherg that he go to, we had to fd a way to tell that didn’t feel anachronistic even though there’s almost no rearch that one uld actually do about a place like that bee there was no gay bars York 1927, ” said Engler.

WHICH DOWNTON ABBEY ACTORS ARE GAY?

Although there were rerds of tablishments London where gay men uld gather, those were primarily for procurg sex partners.

There’s people of lor gay bars, and there’s guys who go to the gym and are mcle-y gay bars. Later, when the royal retue is about to take their leave of Downton, Richard reveals that he’s also gay and hop Thomas will stay touch.

THE DIRECTOR OF “DOWNTON ABBEY” OPENED UP ABOUT THE MOVIE’S TOUCHG GAY STORYLE

However, for LGBTQ+ fans of Downton Abbey, there will be even more excement to see the return of gay character Thomas Barrow, who will be portrayed once aga by Rob Jam-Collier. Barrow is not jt a gay character, he’s not jt an openly gay character, and he’s not jt a gay character played by an openly gay actor.

Homosexualy the early 20th century. When Downton Abbey buted 2010, set self apart om other perd dramas by featurg a gay character — Thomas. Though homosexualy was illegal England until 1967, Julian Fellow ma sure to clu Thomas as part of his ensemble st.

In a past terview wh the Prs Associatn, Rob said his character’s storyle picts the cel treatment of beg a gay man way back the 1920s.

DOWNTON ABBEY STAR MOVED BY GAY STORYLE NEW MOVIE

And even though he had to al wh homophobia om other members of staff and society, he still found ways to make work for himself and, the end, managed to fd happs. Robert returns as Thomas (Picture: ITV)Former Corrie star Robert Jam-Collier has revealed his own reactn to landg an important gay storyle the upg Downton Abbey film.

The actor, who plays valet-turned-butler Thomas Barrow for the big-screen outg, after starrg the ITV drama, said his plotle shows the treatment of beg a gay man the 1920s.

DOWNTON ABBEY'STHOMAS AT A GAY BAR WH THE DOWAGER? IT COULD HAPPEN

Speakg of beg given the opportuny to lift the lid on what was like, Jam said was an emotnal sight to a horrific perd for gay people. He’s opened up on his important storyle (Picture: PA)He ntued: ‘It also hammers home what was like to be a gay man those tim, was horrific and ’s brought back and jt shows how different was. Downton Abbey star Rob Jam-Collier has suggted that playg a gay character the show has hurt his reer.

“I thk dienc the US n intify que easily wh the qutsential English gent and English lady, ” he said, “whereas a nrotic, dark, gay character like Thomas is a hard thg to put to the Amerin market. “Bee Thomas Barrow is gay and is, sentially, the bad guy for much of the show, a lot of people wh the dtry n only see you as that, ” the actor ntued. Jam-Collier also revealed that he has turned down theatril rol “which happened to be gay characters” sce Downton Abbey fished bee he “really wanted to show somethg different”.

Thomas Barrow, Downton Abbey‘s valet-turned-butler, whose dark journey durg the seri saw him take some wrenchg steps to try and “cure” himself of homosexualy, received a much more hopeful treatment the new feature film of the same name.