Out singer Sam Smith on Sunday accepted
his Oscar for Best Original Song as a “proud gay man.”
Smith won the award for the Spectre
theme he co-wrote with James Napes.
“I read an article a few months ago
by Sir Ian McKellen and he said that no openly gay man had ever won
an Oscar, and if this is the case, even if it isn’t the case, I
want to dedicate this to the LGBT community all around the world,”
Smith said in accepting the award. “I stand here tonight as a
proud gay man, and I hope we can all stand together as equals one
day.”
Smith, however, had misunderstood
McKellen, who told The Guardian that he wondered whether it
was “prejudice or chance” that no openly gay actor had ever won
the Oscar. As recently as 2009, out writer Dustin Lance Black won
for Best Original Screenplay for Milk.
McKellen pointed out that many straight
actors had been recognized for playing gay roles, such as Tom Hanks,
Jared Leto, Sean Penn and Philip Seymour Hoffman. “How clever, how
clever,” he said. “What about giving me one for playing a
straight man?”