Thursday, March 01, 2007

The Problem With Talking

I'm really not trying to make more out of this than there is, but why do some "straight" people still feel the need to constantly remind everyone that the idea having sex with someone of the same sex "isn't their thing"? For no apparent reason, reformed homophobic Mark Wahlberg reverted to his Marky Mark persona briefly in the new issue of Premiere when asked about his purported involvement in the early casting stages of "Brokeback Mountain": "I met with Ang Lee on that movie, I read 15 pages of the script and got a little creeped out. It was very graphic, descriptive -- the spitting on the hand, getting ready to do the thing. I told Ang Lee, 'I like you, you’re a talented guy, if you want to talk about it more …' Thankfully, he didn't. I didn't rush to see 'Brokeback,' it’s just not my deal … Obviously, it was done in taste -- look how it was received."

Believe me, I don't have a problem with the whole world not being gay, but can't the average Joe -- let alone someone in the public eye who has had run-ins with hate speech before -- realize how comments like this come across to other people? First of all you're an actor. Was he creeped out blowing away people in "The Big Hit" or playing a pathetic drug addict in "Boogie Nights"? It's just one of those unintentional slights that get made on a regular basis that people would never do with other minority groups. Would Dennis Quaid, who has been married to a couple of white women, tell a magazine that he was happy he didn't do "Monster's Ball" because kissing a mixed-race woman isn't "his deal" -- even if that were the case? Of course not. I'm not saying this is some big conspiracy against gays and lesbians, but sometimes people just need to shut their traps.

4 comments:

Anonymous said...

Meanwhile, he was fine with dropping his trou and dancing shirtless in countless gay bars across the country during his Marky Mark days. Even though he is narrow minded, I still drool every time I see him nearly naked.

Anonymous said...

And aren't we all thrilled he wasn't cast?! I mean Heath and Jake can act circles around that jackass.

*CSR* said...

Wahlberg just made himself look like an idiot by saying that. I've always had the feeling that people who spend so much time going on about how "I would never do that" are just protesting just a *little* too much.

It's like they have maybe thought about it but are afraid... so they have to beat their chest loudly to convince the world (and themselves).

I dunno.

Anonymous said...

This doesn't mean he's a homophob, it just means he felt uncomfortable doing the movie. Leave him alone, you're taking a small thing and blowing it way out of proportion. I support gay rights, but I'm not about to take every single conversation that *might* be against homosexuality and say "He's a homophob and doesn't get us!"