‘I Was Too Gay to Play the Part’: Nathan Lane Believes Homophobia Cost Him a Role in Space Jam

Actor Nathan Lane was passed over for a role in the 1996 movie Space Jam, a decision he feels was likely due to homophobia. However, it’s not the “role that got away” for Lane, as he says he actually felt relieved that he didn’t have to do the film.

Lane addressed his near-casting in Space Jam during a new interview with Vanity Fair. He was asked about how much homophobia might have impacted his career during that era, and that had the actor remembering the situation with Space Jam. As Lane explained, he was in consideration to play Stan Podolak, Michael Jordan’s assistant, who was ultimately played by Wayne Knight. Lane also said he’d been told that the film’s director, Joe Pytka, thought he was “too gay” for the role.

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“I don’t know what goes on behind closed doors, but I can’t help but think that [homophobia] played a part [in limiting movie roles],” he said. “I was told it did impact a movie that I didn’t really care about: Space Jam. I was up for the part that the guy from Seinfeld wound up playing.”

He continued, “I was up for that part. Apparently the director saw me hosting the Tony Awards and thought that suggested I was too gay to play the part. So thank God, I didn’t have to do Space Jam. [Laughs] But I don’t know. I’ll never know what people say. Homophobia is alive and well still.”

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“Before I die, it would be lovely to get to play a juicy, serious supporting role in some film,” Lane continued. “That’s why I’m very grateful to Ryan Murphy. He let me play Dominick Dunne [in Monsters: The Lyle and Erik Menendez Story] and F. Lee Bailey [in The People v. O.J. Simpson: American Crime Story]. I mean, things are great. [Laughs] I don’t want it to seem like I don’t have a really terrific, enviable career.”

Robin Williams Helped Protect Nathan Lane During That Era

At the time of Space Jam’s release, Lane was not out publicly. The actor came out in 1999, and in 2015, he married his longtime partner of 18 years, Devlin Elliott. Before he was ready to come out, Lane expressed to Robin Williams, his co-star from 1996’s The Birdcage, that he was concerned about being prodded about his orientation during an interview with Oprah Winfrey to promote the film. As expected, Winfrey broached the subject, but Williams swooped in to steer the conversation away quickly so as not to put Lane on the spot.

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“I had expressed my fears beforehand to the late, great Robin Williams, who kindly said to me, ‘Don’t worry, Nathan. You don’t have to discuss it if you’re not ready.’ And he went on to protect me whenever he could, throughout the awkward moments,” Lane said last year, via People. “[Oprah] was like, ‘How come you’re so good at that girlie stuff? Are you worried about being typecast?’ And then Robin sort of swoops in and diverts Oprah, goes off on a tangent and protects me because he was a saint.”

Space Jam is streaming on Netflix, while Nathan Lane’s new show, Mid-Century Modern, will premiere on Hulu on March 28, 2025.

Source: Vanity Fair

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Space Jam

PG

Adventure

Comedy

Animation

Release Date November 15, 1996

Runtime 88 Minutes

Director Joe Pytka

Writers Herschel Weingrod, Timothy Harris, Steve Rudnick, Leo Benvenuti

Cast

See All

Charles Barkley

Bob Bergen

Dee Bradley Baker

Michael Jordan

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