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Love, Victor star Michael Cimino says he's received death threats for playing a gay lead
17 June 2021, 12:22
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Michael Cimino is straight in real life and Love, Victor tells the story of a gay teenager coming to terms with his sexuality.
Michael Cimino has opened up about the backlash he's received for being a straight actor playing a gay lead in Love, Victor.
Love, Victor tells the story of a gay Latinx teen coming to terms with his sexuality. The hit show is a spinoff of the 2018 Love, Simon movie and, like Love, Simon, Love, Victor has faced criticism for casting straight actors in gay roles instead of queer people. Both Michael Cimino, who plays Victor, and George Sear, who plays his love interest Benji, are straight in real life.
Now, Michael Cimino has responded to the criticism and revealed that he's received death threats for playing the role
READ MORE: Love, Victor fans think they know who Victor picks out of Benji and Rahim
Speaking to Attitude, Michael said: "I've definitely had some criticism from the LGBT community for being in the role… I've had death threats, which is horrible. But the show is important to me. The messages of hate – I came into it knowing that would happen, regardless of how good I was."
Michael continued: "But there are some straight actors who play gay characters, who are all about supporting LGBT rights while they're promoting their project, but once they’re done, a year later, it’s kind of forgotten. That’s not how to be an ally, that’s not how you support LGBT rights. If you’re not an actual ally, then what are you doing?"
Michael ended the interview by saying: "It's an honor to play Victor, and a big responsibility. I went in with the pure intent to represent that correctly. I held myself to a really high standard to make sure everyone going through this story felt represented by the show."
