Julianna Margulies Defends Playing a Lesbian on 'The Morning Show'

The Good Wife star weighs in on the age-old debate about straight actors taking on LGBTQ+ roles.

Julianna Margulies is putting in her two cents when it comes to larger, ongoing cultural discussions about whether or not straight actors should be playing LGBTQ+ characters.

During a recent appearance on CBS Mornings, the 55-year-old, Emmy-winning TV legend (whose most well-known credits include iconic shows like ER and The Good Wife) opened up about taking on the new role of Laura Peterson, a lesbian news anchor on Apple TV+'s original series The Morning Show. 

Though Marguiles' character becomes romantically involved with Reese Witherspoon's character Bradley Jackson, providing fans with the sapphic vibes they've been desperately needing on TV, some critics have questioned whether or not one of mainstream TV's still too few queer roles should be going to actors outside of the LGBTQ+ community. And now, Marguiles is taking some time to respond to those critiques.

"It could be my age now maybe, but you get to a place in your life, and I think the same thing happened with Laura, where you go: 'This is who I am, take it or leave it, I'm not interested in pretending, I have no skeletons in my closet, I'm not hiding. I'm telling the truth and if you don't like it I guess then you're not in my orbit,'" she told CBS Mornings hosts when asked how she relates to her character.

When asked about LGBTQ+ roles going to actors who are actually LGBTQ+, Marguiles said, "I can understand that. My response also would be we're all making assumptions as to who I am and what my past is and what all of our pasts are." 

She continued:

"I understand 100 percent that I can't play a different race, but I am an actress and I am supposed to embody another character, whatever their sexuality is doesn't matter to me. Are you telling me that because I'm a mother I can never play a woman who's never had a child? Or if you've never been married that you can't play a married woman? You have to be careful on where you're drawing the line there. We're actors, we're supposed to embody a character regardless of their sexuality. When it comes to race and gender that's a whole different story and I 100 percent agree with that. So that's my stance on it."

RELATED | 11 Straight Actors Who Won Awards for Playing Queer Roles

Julianna Margulies Defends Playing a Lesbian on The Morning Show