Ian McKellen Reveals 'Star Wars' Star Alec Guinness Once Warned Him To Stay Quiet About Gay Rights

Though many believe that celebrities and major social media influencers should use their platforms and their voices to discuss important issues like equality, gay rights, and politics, some people would rather those worlds not mix.

During a recent Q&A interview with The Guardian, Lord of the Rings star Sir Ian McKellen opened up about a variety of topics and experiences from his lifelong career.

One prompt was for McKellen to share the "worst piece of advice" he'd ever received as an actor, and it came from a certain Star Wars icon who was not feeling the Force at the time.

Sir Ian reflected:

"He took me for an Italian lunch in Pimlico, where we chatted about this and that until he brought up the real reason for his invitation."

"He had heard about my work to establish Stonewall, a lobby group to present to the government and the world at large the case for treating U.K. lesbians and gays equally under the law with the rest of the population."

"He thought it somewhat unseemly for an actor to dabble in public or political affairs and advised me, and sort of pleaded with me, to withdraw."

"It was advice from an older generation, which I didn’t follow.”

Fans appreciated McKellen's recounting of the situation and how he respected his elders while choosing his own path.

Others were simply glad that McKellen carved his own path.

The conversation also became popular on the "Entertainment" subReddit, and Redditors applauded Sir Ian for following through with Stonewall instead of listening to Guinness's advice.

"Good on you, Sir Ian." - Obesz

"To be fair, being gay in 1980 would have been a career killer. The only reason it isn't now is because some people didn't follow that advice, sometimes at great personal cost." - No-Pie-7211

"While I don’t agree with it, I can understand he grew up in an era where people had their careers ruined by even being insinuated to be gay or aligning themselves with gay issues."

"That said, progress never would have happened had people not spoken up and defended the rights of minority groups, so it’s always been the right thing to do. (Even if it’s hard and scary, especially back then)." - ryan13ts

"This is, I think, a reasonable way to be 'from another time.' Sir Alec wasn’t giving bad or hateful advice; he was giving outdated advice. But I AM glad that Sir Ian didn't listen." - ScreenMuch90210

"Sorry, but as a married gay man, I have tremendous respect for those who pushed for gay rights while they were the sub one percent. But I’m not going to have disrespect for those who had to hide who they were and stay in the closet because of the very real threat of violence."

"I can’t say what I would have done in their shoes." - jb_nelson_

"It’s advice I respect McKellen for not taking, but I do definitely understand where Alec Guinness was coming from to an extent."

"He was born in 19 hundred f**king fourteen, during a time where it was still illegal in the UK for queer men to be open about their sexuality and still heavily stigmatized for queer women to do so, even if it wasn’t illegal in the same way."

"McKellen was too, but the fact that he was part of a different generation may well have affected his own viewpoint differently."

"I can’t judge Guinness for giving advice that was rooted in a life experience many of us can’t relate to as easily. LGBTQ+ rights are being increasingly threatened, but in some places, it is still much more acceptable to be open about it than it once was."

"That is why I do respect McKellen for not taking that advice, because without people who were willing to take a stand, that wouldn’t have happened. But we can and also should try to understand why people like Guinness felt the way they did, as well." - Life-Cantaloupe-3184

Some could see where Guinness was coming from, at least in the context of the time.

"I don't really blame Guinness for this. He was a product of his era and probably thought he was being genuinely helpful, but I'm glad McKellen was strong enough to say, 'No, I'm going to use what influence I have to try and make things better.'"

"There are a lot of people today still encouraging queer people to tone it down and make ourselves more palatable, or telling celebrities to stay in their lane. Politics is everyone's lane, and celebrities who use their power to help people are a necessary part of the fight."

"Unfortunately, we also have celebrities who use their power to hurt people, but that's another topic..." - Grey_Belkin

"Being openly gay (or founding Stonewall) could very well have derailed or destroyed another actor's career. Sir Ian was talented enough, eloquent enough, and in the right time to have both." - Lews-Therin-Telamon

"To be fair, Ian McKellen didn't see as much widespread fame as others of his generation until he was much older, so it could well have had an effect."

"Considering he was acting alongside people like Judi Dench, Maggie Smith, John Hurt, and Derek Jacobi in the theatre in his youth, they all became household names in film and TV well before he did." - jaymz668

"You have to remember the context of the times. This was solid info back in the day when simply being different could completely end your career or even life. It's different now, fortunately." - N00BAL0T

Most on X and Reddit could understand why Guinness gave the advice he did, based on the time in which he was born and raised, which was much more closed-minded toward, and even dangerous for, people promoting gay rights.

That said, the world needs more people like Sir Ian McKellen who carve their own path and do things, like creating Stonewall, that may be difficult but help so many people.