Mark Ruffalo says he's ready to tackle
his first gay role in the upcoming big screen adaptation of the The
Normal Heart.
Ruffalo – the co-star of last year's
lesbian
moms flick The Kids Are Alright – will team up with Glee
creator Ryan Murphy in the AIDS drama.
In
an interview with gay glossy The Advocate, Ruffalo said he
hesitated before taking the role.
“It's a great honor, but I was
hesitant about doing Normal Heart because it probably should
be a gay actor,” Ruffalo said. “I brought that up to Ryan, but
he said that I was the actor he wanted.”
The movie is based on the
semi-autobiographical Larry Kramer play by the same name. The play's
1985 premiere was critically acclaimed. Kramer has signed on to
write the screenplay.
Ruffalo added that Kramer is also OK
with a straight man playing the role: “More than anything, I wanted
to know what Larry thought. Larry speaks his mind and doesn't suffer
fools kindly, God bless him, so I made it a point to make sure I was
OKed by him. I've gotten to meet and talk to him, and he's totally
given me his blessing, which makes me feel better about moving
forward.”
In February, Ruffalo
and his wife Sunrise recorded a video urging New Yorkers to support
marriage equality.