Eddie Redmayne Admits It Was a 'Mistake' to Play a Trans Woman

Back in 2015, the actor was criticized for his Oscar-nominated role in The Danish Girl, which was based on the story of trans trailblazer Lili Elbe.

At the time, many argued a trans actress should have played the painter, who underwent the first documented gender reassignment surgery in 1930. Now though, Redmayne himself is speaking on the controversy, calling his acceptance of the role a "mistake" six years later.

Related | Scarlett Johansson Says She 'Mishandled' Trans Role

"No, I wouldn't take it on now," Redmayne recently told The Times of London. "The bigger discussion about the frustrations around casting is because many people don't have a chair at the table."

He added, "There must be a leveling, otherwise we are going to carry on having these debates."

As of late, Redmayne — who starred in the Fantastic Beasts and Where To Find Them franchise — spoke out against Harry Potter author J.K. Rowling over her anti-trans comments, telling Variety last year that "respect for transgender people remains a cultural imperative, and over the years I have been trying to constantly educate myself."

The casting of cis actors in trans roles has been on ongoing conversation within Hollywood for several years, with other examples including Halle Berry's comments about wanting to play a trans man and Jared Leto's role in Dallas Buyers Club as a trans woman with HIV, for which he won an Oscar for Best Supporting Actor. In 2018, Scarlett Johansson also dropped out of Rub & Tugafter incurring controversy for her starring role as trans crime boss Dante "Tex" Gill. Granted, the film was subsequently redeveloped as a television show with a trans lead under Pose writer Our Lady J.

Read Redmayne's entire interview with The Times of London here.

Photo via Getty / Michael Buckner