The young star reveals he owes it to his latest role as the gay son of a Baptist pastor in a small American town to 'speak as honestly as possible.'
- Sep 6, 2018
AceShowbiz - Actor Lucas Hedges' upcoming conversion-therapy movie "Boy Erased" has prompted the 21 year old to open up about his teenage struggles with sexuality.
The young star tells Vulture magazine he owes it to his latest role as the gay son of a Baptist pastor in a small American town to "speak as honestly as possible", revealing he grew up having feelings for girls and boys.
"In the early stages of my life, some of the people I was most infatuated with were my closest male friends," he tells the publication. "That was the case through high school, and I think I was always aware that while, for the most part, I was attracted to women, I existed on a spectrum.
"I felt ashamed that I wasn't 100 per cent, because it was clear that one side of sexuality presents issues, and the other doesn't as much. I recognise myself as existing on that spectrum - not totally straight, but also not gay and not necessarily bisexual."
Hedges admits he's still confused about his sexuality, adding, "People expect you, as an actor, to have a voice that's set in some way, and that's really not what I am. I'm very much within the conflict and confusion of my own life, still, and I definitely feel a pressure to step up in a way. I prefer to step up in my art, and I don't entirely know how to in my life."
In his new film, he plays the son of Nicole Kidman and Russell Crowe's characters, who try to force him to attend a conversion therapy programme after realising their son is gay.
