Hugh Jackman Is Just Getting Stingy Now

He wants all my love—ALL OF IT!


Hugh Jackman has announced that despite wanting to be a dancer when he was a child, he gave up his dreams after his older brother accused him of being gay.

The 40-year-old X-Men Origins: Wolverine star said in an interview with Time Out: "In another world, another life, probably growing up in another country, I might have been more of a dancer. In fact I was going down that road when I was about 12.

"I was encouraged to do that, and I remember my brother saying, 'Ah, you poof,' so I gave it up. I dropped it like a hot rock. I didn't have the guts of Billy Elliot at the time!

"I think was about 11 actually, I wasn't even 100 per cent sure what [poof] meant, but I knew this wasn't cool. Then later when I was about 18, I remember thinking this is just ridiculous; I enjoyed dancing."
So, here's the thing. This could have been like any one of a billion stories I've read in which a male celebrity talks about giving up some pursuit (frequently professional ball-athletes who gave up ballet, or businessmen who gave up acting) because a father/older brother/friend(s) told them it was "faggy" or "for girls," that concludes with some variation of: "So I gave it up and lived happily ever after as a very manly man. The End."

But this is a Hugh Jackman story, so, instead, it ends with: "And I realized that being afraid to be seen as gay was weak, and it was stupid, and so I said, 'Fuck it,' and learned to dance and lived happily ever after. The End." Which is, like, so much better it's not even funny.

And, once again, I don't care if he is gay but closeted as the gossip insists: At the moment he's presenting as straight—and he's not suing magazines who suggest he's gay; he's telling a story about a boy who learned to dance despite gay taunts. There are boys who need to hear those stories. (Girls, too.) So I'm glad he's telling his own.

Shakesville is run as a safe space. First-time commenters: Please read Shakesville's Commenting Policy and Feminism 101 Section before commenting. We also do lots of in-thread moderation, so we ask that everyone read the entirety of any thread before commenting, to ensure compliance with any in-thread moderation. Thank you.

blog comments powered by Disqus