Nathan Lane, the acclaimed actor known for his work in The Birdcage, Modern Family, and the upcoming Monsters: The Lyle and Erik Menendez Story, has opened up about the struggles he faced in Hollywood due to homophobia, revealing he once missed out on a role in Space Jam because the director thought he was “too gay”.
Speaking to Vanity Fair, Lane reflected on the challenges he encountered as an out gay actor, noting that while he couldn’t always be sure what went on “behind closed doors”, he believed discrimination influenced some casting decisions.
“I don’t know what goes on behind closed doors, but I can’t help but think that it played a part,” Lane said. “I was told it did impact a movie that I didn’t really care about: Space Jam. I was up for the part that the guy from Seinfeld [Wayne Knight] wound up playing.”
Lane continued, “Apparently, the director [Joe Pytka] saw me hosting the Tony Awards and thought that suggested I was too gay to play the part. So thank God, I didn’t have to do Space Jam. But I don’t know. I’ll never know what people say. Homophobia is alive and well still.”
Space Jam, which premiered in 1996—the same year as The Birdcage—marked a major point in Lane’s career, though it didn’t lead to the film opportunities he expected. Lane, who came out publicly in 1999, said The Birdcage’s success didn’t translate into a Hollywood breakthrough.
“Then The Birdcage came along. I thought perhaps because of the success of that, it’d lead to other films, but then it didn’t. It really didn’t,” he recalled. “I said to my agent, ‘I thought more would happen after The Birdcage.’ He said, ‘Maybe if you weren’t so open about your lifestyle, it would have.’”
Despite past setbacks, Lane continues to thrive in television and film. He’s next set to star in Mid-Century Modern, a new sitcom described as a “gay Golden Girls,” alongside Matt Bomer and Nathan Lee Graham. The Ryan Murphy-produced series follows three gay friends of a certain age who decide to spend their later years together in Palm Springs following the death of one of their partners.
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