Darren Criss Says He’s Been ‘S**t On’ for His Iconic Gay Roles

Darren Criss, who is perhaps best known for his gay roles in Glee and The Assassination of Gianni Versace: American Crime Story, says that he's been "shit on" for his acting choices.

In a new interview with The Independent, Criss opened up about his new Christmas album, the "evil British press," the positive memories from Glee, and what he thinks about straight actors playing queer roles.

“Let’s just say, I’ve been sh*t on,” Criss shared. “No matter what I say, I’m going to get into the same mess that I’ve always gotten in, which is me being what I believe is very fair and diplomatic, but nobody’s interested in that, because compassion is not currently in vogue. So I don’t know what to say. I’m making it sound like I have some controversial thing to say, which I don’t. What I say is very normal.”

The 34-year-old star, who identifies as straight and is married producer Mia Swier, has addressed questions about his sexuality since he was thrust into the spotlight as Blaine on Glee. Most recently, he's received criticism for taking on LGBTQ+ roles when they could go to a gay actor.

“There are so many performances that are either straight roles given by queer actors or queer roles that are done by straight actors that are so beloved, that we just don’t talk about those,” he said. “But if they’re done poorly, we get up in arms and we blame it on the fact that this person isn’t queer, this person isn’t straight, as opposed to maybe they just weren’t the right person for the job?”

Criss won an Emmy for his role as serial killer Andrew Cunanan in American Crime Story. During his acceptance speech, he encouraged Hollywood to cast more queer actors. In the time following, he announced he wouldn't take on any more gay roles.

Regardless, his characters – especially Blaine – have had a massive impact on pop culture. "I have a lot of queer folks that come up to me, particularly older folks, that will say how much that relationship meant to them. They’ll say, ‘When I was growing up, I didn’t really ever get to see that on TV’… and then I always remind them, neither did I… As a cis straight man, I also didn’t see that."

Criss reiterates his commitment and love for the LGBTQ+ community. "While I have not grown up as a queer person, I’m a lifetime subscriber, man. I’m a season ticket holder to the queer experience. I grew up in San Francisco in the 90s; these are people that raised my cultural awareness… [so] also it means a lot to me.”