#IanMcKellen says 'Star Wars' icon told him to avoid #LGBTQ politics
The actor and LGBTQ rights advocate revealed in a new interview that fellow actor #AlecGuinness once "pleaded" with him to avoid discussing the political issue.
by Edward Segarra
May 11, 2026, 1:25 p.m. ET
"Ian McKellen doesn't need anyone's permission to stand on his soapbox.
In an interview with The Guardian published May 7, the Oscar-nominated actor revealed that he was allegedly discouraged by fellow actor Alec Guinness from speaking out on #LGBTQRights.
"Guinness, who died in 2000, was an acclaimed British actor, best known among sci-fi fans for his role as Obi-Wan Kenobi in the original 'Star Wars' trilogy.
While discussing the 'worst piece of advice' he'd ever been given, McKellen recalled an alleged meeting he had with Guinness around the late '80s.
" 'He took me for an Italian lunch in Pimlico, where we chatted about this and that until he brought up the real reason for his invitation,' McKellen, 86, told the British outlet. 'He had heard about my work to establish #Stonewall – a lobby group to present to the government and the world at large the case for treating U.K. lesbians and gays equally under the law with the rest of the population.
" 'He thought it somewhat unseemly for an actor to dabble in public or political affairs and advised me, sort of pleaded with me, to withdraw. Advice from an older generation, which I didn't follow.' "
Read more:
usatoday.com/story/entertainme…
Archived version:
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#UKPol #OutAndProud #LGBTHistoryMonth #PrideLondon #OxfordPride #GayGlos #FFLAG
Ian McKellen revealed in a new interview that he was allegedly discouraged by fellow actor Alec Guinness from speaking out on LGBTQ rights.
Edward Segarra (USA TODAY)
