Eric McCormack Defends Straight Actors Playing Gay Roles

Eric McCormack is the latest star to weigh in on the debate on whether or not straight actors should play gay characters.

The 60-year-old Emmy-winning actor, who is best known for playing gay lawyer Will Truman on the groundbreaking sitcom Will & Grace, is straight in real life and recently defended straight actors being cast in LGBTQ+ roles.

Keep reading to find out more…While appearing on ITV’s Good Morning Britain, Eric said that he believes that the “best person for the role” should be cast in projects, regardless of sexuality.

“That’s a tough one for me, because I didn’t become an actor so that I could play an actor,” Eric said when asked about the debate, via EW. “There’s no part I’ve ever played where I wasn’t playing something I’m not. It’s part of the gig. And I’ve always said, if gay actors weren’t allowed to play straight actors, Broadway would be over.”

“So this is what we do,” Eric continued. “I’d like to think that I represent it well. I came from the theater, and one of my best friends was a gay man. So I think I took their spirit and their message in what was otherwise just a sitcom and, represented it, I hope.”

When asked if he would be cast as Will if Will & Grace was made today, Eric responded, “Well, I guess the answer would be, they’d have to say in the casting room: ‘And you’re gay, right?,’ which I don’t think they can say.”

“I would like to think in general that the best person for the role, the one that comes in and knocks it out of the park, is the one that gets the part,” Eric added.

Openly out actor Luke Evans also recently shared his thoughts on the debate.