Lily Gladstone continues to clarify her sexuality as her queer-inclusive romantic comedy is charming critics and audiences alike.
Speaking to the U.K.’s The Times in an interview published Friday, Gladstone opened up about her role as one half of a Seattle lesbian couple in “The Wedding Banquet,” while calling herself “queer,” “pansexual” and “straight.”
Recently, the “Killers of the Flower Moon” star ― who is of Indigenous heritage ― also has found herself identifying as demisexual.
“I can’t put a label on it,” the “Killers of the Flower Moon” star told the outlet. “One of the big things that tipped me to my queerness is I don’t have the draw to motherhood the way a lot of women have. There was a period of my life when I thought I might be asexual because I had no sexual attraction to anybody. I had a romantic attraction to everybody but no sexual desire.”
“Then the word ‘demisexual’ came into play, where it’s, like, I don’t feel sexual stirring at all unless I actually care about this person, no matter who they are,” she added, but did not specify if she currently has a partner.
Demisexuality is used to describe people who only feel sexual attraction after forming a strong emotional bond or connection with a prospective partner.
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According to the Demisexuality Resource Center, demisexual people feel sexual attraction, and thus engage in sexual activities, considerably less than the general population. As such, they are considered to be on the asexual spectrum, “meaning they are closely aligned with asexuality, but not quite asexual,” per the center’s website.
Elsewhere in her chat with The Times, Gladstone said she supports the casting of LGBTQ+ actors in queer roles on the big screen, noting: “Lived experience is the important thing, what the hardships you’ve had to face are.”
Released April 18, “The Wedding Banquet” is a remake of a classic 1993 rom-com, albeit significantly modernized. The movie follows a lesbian couple, Angela (played by Kelly Marie Tran) and Lee (Gladstone) as they are preparing to start a family.
Angela agrees to marry a gay Korean pal, Min (Han Gi-chan) ― despite the protests of his commitment-weary boyfriend, Chris (Bowen Yang) ― so that she can access Min’s family wealth while allowing him to remain in the U.S. Naturally, plenty of comedic hijinks ensue.
In an interview with Vanity Fair last fall teasing the release of “The Wedding Banquet,” Tran confirmed for the first time publicly that she is a queer woman.
“I wasn’t planning to come out at all,” the “Star Wars: The Last Jedi” actor recalled to HuffPost last month. “But this film was such a warm hug of an experience. I remember thinking, ‘I don’t want to hide this part of myself,’ and how hypocritical it would be to enjoy the benefits of this experience and not share that part of me. I’m glad it happened in a way that was natural.”
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