While Hollywood has progressed over the years, there was a point in its extensive history that being in the sexual minority means having to face discrimination and limited opportunities. For “Fellow Travelers” star Matt Bomer, his sexual orientation even caused him to lose a role on the big screen as the Man of Steel.
In an interview with The Hollywood Reporter, the gay actor spoke about being cast as Superman in a movie project titled “Superman: Flyby”. According to Entertainment Weekly, “Superman: Flyby” was written by J.J. Abrams, with Brett Ratner as director. Matt said he had already signed a contract with the studio to do three movies as the superhero but got kicked off the project. When asked about whether his sexuality was a factor in him losing the role, the 47-year-old believed that it was.
Matt said, “Yeah, that’s my understanding. That was a time in the industry when something like that could still be really weaponised against you.” The actor officially came out as gay in 2012 during an award acceptance speech where he thanked his partner, Simon Halls. However, during the time of his Superman audition, he has yet to publicise his sexuality, suggesting that he was outed. Unfortunately, Matt doesn’t know who had outed him or why they did it.
While “Flyby” was eventually scrapped and re-envisioned into the 2006 “Superman Returns”, the outlet reported that Matt was Brett’s top pick for Superman. Author Jackie Collins once spoke about the project and how discrimination and prejudice against Matt was what cost him to lose the Clark Kent role. However, a source claimed that the actor lost the part because Brett had left the project, and thus, the cast was longer his call.
Despite losing the big screen role, Matt did end up becoming Superman in another way – voicing the iconic character in the direct-to-DVD animated movie, “Superman: Unbound”. What are your thoughts on Matt’s story?
Source: Entertainment Weekly
