Andrew Scott has spoken about his past fear that he would struggle to be cast in straight roles as a gay actor, saying the success of his “Hot Priest” character in Fleabag challenged that assumption.
Scott discussed the issue during an “In Conversation With…” panel at the Toronto International Film Festival, shortly before attending the premiere of his new film Elsinore.
Reflecting on concerns about being accepted in heterosexual romantic roles, the 49-year-old actor said: “I guess there was a fear that I wouldn’t be able to get cast in those roles. That’s what everybody said.”
He added that his experience on stage had given him confidence that audiences would not be distracted by his sexuality.
“But I knew, because when I did plays, that the people that were waiting at the stage door, they knew my sexuality and they did not care,” Scott said.
The actor said he was proud that his casting as the priest in Fleabag became a significant moment for audiences.
“I feel very proud that that was quite a big moment because people were like, ‘The actor is gay. Whoa!’” he said. “And it is like this idea that the audience is stupid. We go to see ‘Batman,’ and it’s like, ‘Oh my god! He is not a bat?’”
Scott dismissed objections to gay actors playing straight characters as prejudice, adding: “And we won’t cater to those people, or I’m certainly not going to.”
Andrew Scott premieres Elsinore at TIFF
Scott attended the Elsinore premiere at Toronto’s Princess of Wales Theatre on Monday, 14 September, alongside co-stars Johnny Flynn, Billie Piper and Monica Dolan.
The film tells the true story of Ian Charleson, a gifted actor whose greatest challenge becomes his greatest triumph as he faces his own mortality with honesty, wit and grace.
The cast also includes Olivia Colman, Luke Thompson, David Dawson, Matthew Beard, Joe Locke, Georgie Glen, Sadie Soverall, Adeel Akhtar, Dickie Beau, Juliet Stevenson and Peter Mullan.
Scott is also a producer on the film, which is due to be released in selected cinemas on 20 November.
