Rupert Everett hits out at cultural appropriation of ‘bulls***’ taking over acting and fears ‘activists are in charge’

British actor Rupert Everett has branded concerns about ‘cultural appropriation’ in films as ‘just bulls**t’, lashing out at activists he says are ‘in charge’.

Sharing his thoughts while promoting his new novel, The American No, at the Cambridge Literary Festival, Everett told the audience that the LGBTQ+ community “exclusively wants gays playing gays and camels playing camels.”

He also said it was “anti-acting” to keep actors from specific roles because their sexual orientation or gender did not match a particular character.

The film star, who is gay, argued that he and other gay theater makers also have the right to portray the love interests of a straight man.

The 65-year-old also stated that it would “be great… if acting was just acting,” before adding that sexuality does not encompass the entire human experience.

‘It’s just one part. I think as an actor you have to think about playing as much as possible,” he said, according to the BBC Telegraph.

The actor, who previously played Julia Roberts’ gay best friend at My Best Friend’s wedding, believed gay actors had previously experienced “a more acceptable moment” in the industry.

He then lashed out at activists, who he said are currently “in charge” of entertainment.

Rupert Everett (pictured) has addressed concerns about ‘cultural appropriation’ in acting, labeling it ‘just bulls**t’

Sharing his thoughts while promoting his new novel, The American No, at the Cambridge Literary Festival, he claimed that ‘activists are in charge’

Elaborating on his argument, he explained that he did not want actors to be repeatedly ‘pigeonholed’ into the same roles.

Setting an example for the crowd, the 65-year-old said that as a Catholic he wouldn’t always want to play characters who shared the same religious preferences with him.

He continued, “Acting is for people who live in people they don’t know. And just playing the same old person would be a bit boring.”

When a member of the crowd said they thought certain minorities should portray stories from their community, the actor disagreed.

He argued that those making the films should be able to choose who they want to play certain characters, before joking about the point of being an actor if you don’t have the versatility to play characters from different backgrounds.

He also called the protests sparked by Scarlett Johansson’s decision to portray a transgender character in Rub & Tug a “mistake” and said it was not “peacemaking.”

The Avengers actress later decided not to take on the role in the film.

While expressing his love and admiration for transgender people, including three of his friends, Everett said the community has at times “gone beyond lobbying.”

‘In Hollywood, films are made in the name of the star. That’s how it is,” he said.

It comes after the actor admitted wild sex in his youth was ‘fraught with danger’ during the AIDS epidemic.

The actor, 65, spoke in a candid new interview about his sexual awakening in London, which he still found ‘exciting’ despite the dangers.

Rupert – who is now happily married to husband Henrique, a Brazilian accountant – also talked about dating women in his youth because it was more acceptable at the time.

He dated the likes of Bianca Jagger, Susan Sarandon, Paula Yates and Béatrice Dalle ‘with varying degrees of success’ – but always knew he was gay.

Rupert Everett has admitted that wild sex in his youth was ‘fraught with danger’ during the AIDS epidemic

The actor, 65, spoke in a candid new interview about his sexual awakening in London, which he still found ‘exciting’ despite the dangers (seen in 1987).

About his sex life, he told The Times: ‘I was stupid. I can’t really understand it and I don’t admire it. I thought sex was my liberation from my middle-class military background, but it was fraught with danger, not just because of AIDS.

‘I was walking on razors without knowing it. As a young person, I can’t really handle myself anymore.’

But he added: ‘It was really fun and exciting. I loved gay sex so much that I didn’t care who I had it with.

‘I wasn’t one of those people who just wanted to meet good-looking people. I wanted to meet someone. It felt so new, fresh and rebellious.”

He added that it was still not generally acceptable to be gay at the time and that in terms of possible physical or verbal abuse he might receive, he had to “be prepared for anything.”