I have to admit that whatever his personal views, he does do a good job of bringing the Poof-fu to the roles he plays. All the roles, apparently.

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Then I found this far more insulting Abercrombie & Fitch interview on the actor's own website and ran across lots of reviews of his DVD commentary which was apparently even more insulting and prejudiced.

Matt, did you happen to read the part of his website where he does a "friday five"? he addressed the A&F article as well as how he's been portrayed by the media. i think you'll find it an interesting read.

i'm not really here. i'm sick sick sick. can someone send me a hot boy to take care of me? preferably one like Josh Holloway or Josh Duhamel. *nod*

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I've read it. Let's say I have a healthy skepticism of the possibility of Abercrombie & Fitch, of all companies, letting Greg Araki deliberately misquote one of their own models to give an erroneous impression of homophobia. Nevermind a concerted media conspiracy to give him that reputation. (Isn't it customary for such interviews to be recorded so there's no later question of inaccuracy if the subject disapproves after the fact?)

Also, though I've not heard the Rules of Attraction DVD commentary myself (yet!), the majority of people reviewing it on several different websites make note of his denigrating remarks—something that should be rather more difficult to misquote or misrepresent. Will report back when I've heard it myself and can make a judgement of vocal tone as well as word choice.

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Oh, blech. I wish I hadn't read that interview. I hate when people turn out to be jerks. Although this bit stuck out at me, in light of his comments:

Gregg Araki: In your career you have played a series of sexually ambiguous characters.

Ian Somerhalder: Yeah, no kidding.

GA: Are you concerned that you’ll be typecast as an ambisexual pretty boy, or do you not care what people think?

IS: I don’t really care what people think. Here is the thing. The more different roles you play, the more varied body of work you are going to have. I want a very diverse body of work—that’s all I am going for.

That's an opinion that I think would have been much rarer even maybe five or ten years ago. I think it's pretty interesting that even though he makes homophobic comments and is grossed out by kissing another guy (although I have to say, I'd be grossed out if I had to kiss James Van Der Beek too), he's still totally willing to play a whole host of queer (or at least "sexually ambiguous") characters. Playing gay is no longer a career-wrecker; seems like now it's more of a career-builder, and I think that's a good sign.

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He discusses the kissing guys objection in an interview with Out, available at that fansite linked above. He doesn't come across homophobic (to me) in that discussion. It seems much more about his own preference.

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Cindy, I was actually responding more to the comments that Matt linked to above, of people responding to his commentary on the Rules of Attraction DVD, which is apparently pretty blatantly homophobic. And, see, now that I reread my post, I realize that I totally did not make that clear. Now I'm interested to see what he said in that Out interview.

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I was so excited to get my Entertainment Weekly this week and see Lost on the cover. I've been waiting for that for over a month. I would've hoped for a longer article and/or more pictures, though.

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Cindy, I was actually responding more to the comments that Matt linked to above, of people responding to his commentary on the Rules of Attraction DVD, which is apparently pretty blatantly homophobic. And, see, now that I reread my post, I realize that I totally did not make that clear. Now I'm interested to see what he said in that Out interview.

Oh, sorry. I saw those comments to which Matt linked, but early this morning. Did they quote him at all Kate, or just say he was horrid?

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cereal...

To be crystal clear, I was offended by the A&F comments, too. I just think Out's paragraph on it put it in a slightly more understandable light.

Here it is: [link] It's not just with Somerhalder. It interviews a few people. His comments about the kiss in The Rules of Attraction, still are not "YAY HoYay!" I think, for me, I just don't have a problem with someone expressing distaste about kissing someone else for whom he has no physical attraction.

Back to that kiss. According to Somerhalder, who played a confused teen who fell for a girl disguised as a boy on the short-lived WB series Young Americans, he and Van Der Beek decided one thing prior to filming the scene: no tongue. "We knew that it was an opportunity to do something that was very different and fuck with people, frankly," says the former model, who also played one of Mathew Shepard's killers in MTV's Anatomy of a Hate Crime. "We totally talked about it before, and the first thing we said is no tongue -- definitely no tongue."

Even though he was "spared" the French kiss, Somerhalder didn't ask for any additional takes. "I have this crazy newfound respect for women," he says. "I don't ever plan on kissing a guy again, because it's so fucking scratchy." He wouldn't have had a choice if the screen version had contained as much gay contact as the book. In Ellis' novel, not only do Paul and Sean have a long-term love affair, but Paul also has a relationship with Mitchell (played by American Pie's Thomas Ian Nicholas), and Sossamon's Lauren partakes in some lesbian trysts, to name just a few examples.

Of course, I'd be all "no-tongue and I don't like scratchies" with most everyone who isn't dh or George Clooney. I don't know how actors get through intimate scenes, regardless of the attraction to their co-stars. I know they always say, "It's just a job," about filming sex and kissing scenes, but I know I couldn't do it, particularly in front of the crew, maybe not even with Clooney Scott.

edited because here t s does nothing.

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I don't find straight guys finding kissing guys difficult or squicky homophobic any more than the fact that I find seeing elderly people french kissing kinda ooky (even though I FULLY plan on getting action when I am that age) means I'm age-ist. It's outside their realm of experience and they have been trained by society to not like it. Most straight guys I know still have trouble crying, even though they rationally know it's normal and healthy. Knowing and feeling are two different things, and we all have to fight to feel comfortable with what is strange to us or what has been taught as bad. Not being comfortable with an action is not the same as not approving of those who DO enjoy it, if you see what I mean. Otherwise i would have to think that my gay guy friends who tell me the thought of going down on a woman makes them want to puke hate me, and I know that ain't true!

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