Speaking at the British Independent
Film Awards, out actor Rupert Everett said that being gay, lesbian or
transgender remains a “life and death challenge” in most of the
world.
The 59-year-old Everett was nominated
for his role as gay poet Oscar Wilde in The Happy Prince at
the British Independent Film Awards.
(Related: Rupert
Everett: Oscar Wilde was the start of the gay liberation movement.)
“In over three quarters of the planet
it’s still a life and death challenge being gay or lesbian or
transgender,” Everett said. “Even in the West everything is
changing. We’ve made enormous progress since the days of Oscar
Wilde. Fantastic things have happened. But at the same time, you also
need to be vigilant. Things are changing all over Europe at the
moment, in all sorts of ways.”
“I think in my community, we have to
be vigilant about it. We have to think really hard about what we’ve
gotten used to in the last 40 or 50 years, because a lot of it might
not be on the menu soon.”
“I think there is a certain
complacency,” he
added.