As he looks back on his earlier projects, X2: X-Men United actor Alan Cumming has opened up about the one particular movie that he thinks is “the gayest.”
The award-winning actor, who has been on a slew of iconic projects, came out publicly as bisexual back in the 1990s. Now serving as the host for the reality competition series The Traitors, which was renewed for Season 3 earlier this year, Cumming reflects on the roles he has played over the course of his career.
Out of all the movies the actor has been in, the 2003 Bryan Singer-directed X-Men film has been the “gayest film” so far, according to the Tony winner. For the longest time, the X-Men franchise has been loved, especially by the queer community, as it has been considered an allegory about the community’s experience.
Disney+ Has the Best Bundle in the Business
Sign-up today for access to Disney+, Hulu, and ESPN+
“Oh, I think the X-Men film I’m in is the gayest film that I’ve ever done, and that’s me saying that. It’s got a queer director, lots of queer actors in it. I love the fact that something so mainstream and so in the comic book world is so queer,” the actor told Entertainment Weekly. “I think, in a way, those sorts of films really help people understand queerness, because you can address it in an artistic way, and everyone is less scared of the concept. It’s an allegory about queerness, about people having these great gifts and really great, powerful things that they have to hide to exist. Queer people understand what that’s all about.”
X2: X-Men United sees Alam Cumming in his most iconic role
Cumming has been in a number of notable projects all throughout his decades-long acting career, including Spice World (1997), GoldenEye (1995), Romy and Michele’s High School Reunion (1997), Cabaret (1998), Josie and the Pussycats (2001), The L Word (2006), and the musical comedy series Schmigadoon!.
While most of his roles helped hone Cumming into the actor he is today, he is arguably most known for portraying Kurt Wagner/Nightcrawler in X2: X-Men United. Unfortunately, the actor was not able to reprise his role as Nightcrawler in subsequent X-Men films, but his portrayal of the powerful mutant remains one of his best.
“Stryker (Brian Cox), a villianous former Army commander, holds the key to Wolverine’s (Hugh Jackman) past and the future of the X-Men. This threat re-ignites the call for a mutant registration act. Stryker starts a full-out assault on Professor Xavier’s (Patrick Stewart) mansion and school. After escaping his plastic cell, Magneto (Ian McKellen) proposes a partnership with Xavier and the X-Men to combat this new formidable enemy they both have in common,” the synopsis for X2: X-Men United reads.
X2: X-Men United and the rest of the X-Men features are available to stream on Disney+.
