Richard Madden thinks all actors should be able to play all parts.
While there has been some criticism of straight actors playing gay parts, Richard has admitted that there is a need for more diversity onscreen but says ultimately the best actor should get the part.
He told The Guardian: "It’s a really terrible route to go down if we start restricting people’s casting based on their personal lives. We have to focus more on diversity and having everyone represented, but I’m also a firm believer in the best actor for the part."
Richard plays John Reid, Elton John’s first manager and one-time lover in the upcoming biopic ‘Rocketman’ and he loved working with star Taron Egerton and director Dexter Fletcher because they were both "so prepared".
He added: "And that’s how I like to be, as prepared as possible, so we get on set and we can just play. Even with dancing, the point is to prep to oblivion so that I don’t think about it and can get on with telling the story."
Although Richard, 32, played romantic heroes early in his career, he has enjoyed taking on darker parts recently, such as in the TV drama ‘Bodyguard’.
He said: "I spent my 20s playing Romeo. Twice, literally, and then versions of it. So I was glad to move into my 30s and be in a place where I might be the villain. I’m used to playing a guy with a few bad characteristics. With that, you think, ‘What has made you this way?’ and you justify them. But what was interesting with ‘Bodyguard’ was realising that… sometimes people are bad. Or they’re good, but they change. This character was fun because he’s manipulative and snide in his tactics, and a b*****d. You’re being dark, and you’re not justifying it. I enjoyed playing that."
Richard Madden: ‘All actors should be able to play all parts’
