Sir Ian McKellen, the actor who played Gandalf in Peter Jackson’s adaptations of The Lord of the Rings, said on Sunday he has received death threats due to his homosexuality and while these had fallen off in recent years, others were still being subjected to homophobia.
“My own death threats have declined considerably. I think I’ve become rather boring now to the public at large on this particular issue so I’m thought to be unremarkable.”
Sir Ian McKellen is a renowned Shakespearean actor who famously “outed” himself live on radio in 1988. He was made a Companion of Honour for his outstanding achievements as an actor and also for his work in championing the causes of diversity.
McKellen is due to reprise the character Gandalf in the two future movies based on JRR Tolkien’s The Hobbit, which will be directed by Mexican filmmaker Guillermo del Toro.
New Line Cinema and Metro-Goldwyn-Mayer Studios have said that filming will commence in 2009, with tentative release dates set of 2010 for the first movie and 2011 for the sequel.
Source: Reuters