Gandalf is in Middle-earth to keep an eye on everybody, and that can be a rather serious matter.
From Ian Mckellen
The whole atmosphere of the book, the tone of 'The Hobbit,' is of a kid's adventure story, told in the first person by Tolkien, who is introducing young people to the notion of Middle-earth. A lot of it is very light-hearted.
Thanks to every gay person in public and non-public life who has come out.
I increasingly see organized religion as actually my enemy. They treat me as their enemy. Not all Christians, of course. Not all Jews, not all Muslims.
When I've been asked what should be on my gravestone, I've said: 'Here lies Gandalf. He came out.' Two big achievements.
The conventional wisdom is that if you are gay, you cannot play the romantic straight lead in a movie.
There are still times in my life where I pull back from being totally honest, and I can't imagine a single straight person who would understand that.
There are some tremendous actors in the U.K. who have been knighted, and I've spent much of my life admiring many of them, like Laurence Olivier. So it's very flattering to be in their company.
If you've been in a film that's seen by millions and millions and millions of people, you're more likely to be recognized for that than for your theater performances, which were seen by considerably less people. Why would I get upset by that?
There are people who've enjoyed my work in the theater, and they let me know that it was special for them. I'm not going to say, 'Well, you should have seen me as Gandalf!'
14 perspectives
9 perspectives
8 perspectives
2 perspectives