Daniel Franzese says “gay bigger people are invisible” in Hollywood.
Mey RudeDaniel Franzese says it’s about time queer men of size got their due in Hollywood. “There are a lot of shows on TV right now showing queer stuff, but they just don’t sexualize bigger gay men,” the Mean Girls star told the gossip website TMZ in a recent interview.
Franzese pointed out that there are a lack of good roles on screen for a diversity of body types but said that “gay bigger people are invisible” in the industry.
Four years after Franzese played the HIV-positive youth advocate Eddie on Looking, he added that Hollywood needs to start allowing different kinds of gay men to get intimate on TV and in movies. According to Franzese, it’s not just about having “bigger” gay characters but about showing that they can be sexy, too. Not depicting queer men of size having happy, healthy sex lives can cause people to feel insecure and make them afraid to show their body.
While he said he has deep respect for Ryan Murphy and the work he does to include diverse casts in his shows, Franzese pointed out that the man behind American Horror Story and Glee has some work to do when it comes to portraying body diversity for queer men.
“He doesn’t have any sexualized bigger guys in any of his programming,” he said. “Nobody does right now. I’d be working if they did!”
Franzese, who has recently appeared in small roles on TV’s GLOW and S.W.A.T., claimed that he’s “never had a problem finding anybody to hook up” but argued that the experience is very different for the characters he plays on screen. “All my characters have to beg people,” he exclaimed. “I don’t understand!”
TMZ also asked Franzese about a recent Instagram post where he’s splashing around shirtless in a pool. The actor said that he’s loving his body after struggling with insecurity for years.
Franzese captioned the post: “Reclaiming my childhood spent wearing a shirt in the pool growing up in Florida. Not giving a F*CK what people think feels so good.”
“It’s #bigboysummer and soaking up every last minute until #bigandtallfall,” he added.
You go, Daniel Franzese!
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