Eddie Redmayne says playing a trans woman in The Danish Girl was a ‘mistake’: ‘I wouldn’t take it on now’
Actor received an Oscar nomination for his leading role in the 2016 drama
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Your support makes all the difference.Eddie Redmayne says that it was a “mistake” of him to play a transgender woman in The Danish Girl.
The Theory of Everything actor was nominated for an Oscar for his role in Tom Hooper’s 2015 film as Lili Elbe, one of the first known trans people to have gender-affirming surgery.
However, the film faced criticism for casting Redmayne, a cisgender man, as a trans woman.
In a new interview with The Sunday Times, Redmayne was asked whether he would play the role again if he were offered it today.
“No, I wouldn’t take it on now,” he said. “I made that film with the best intentions, but I think it was a mistake.”
He continued: “The bigger discussion about the frustrations around casting is because many people don’t have a chair at the table. There must be a levelling, otherwise we are going to carry on having these debates.”
Redmayne was once again criticised for playing a role traditionally portrayed by LGBTQ+ actors after being cast as the Emcee in a new production of Cabaretcurrently in previews at the Playhouse Theatre.
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Speaking about starring in the show opposite Jessie Buckley’s Sally Bowles, Redmayne added: “Of all the characters I’ve ever read, this one defies pigeonholing. I would ask people to come and see it before casting judgment.”
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