Lee Daniels stunned the world with the 2009 film Precious, even snagging an Oscar nomination for Best Director. The openly gay 52-year-old is back with The Paperboy, an equally dark tale set in the southern Florida swamps revolving around a reporter (Matthew McConaughey) and his brother’s (Zac Efron) quest to prove the innocence of a convicted cop killer (John Cusack) who marries a nymphomaniac obsessed with criminals (Nicole Kidman). Sounds wild? Yes, it is. And Daniels’ comments when we talked recently about the film, his superstar cast, and gay people being “third-class citizens” are just as untamed.
Lee, you have Zac Efron basically naked throughout your new film, The Paperboy. Talk about blatant!
Lee Daniels: I know. It’s blatant, but it’s not. When I grew up, I was in my underwear all the time in my mother’s house. I did not look anything like Zac! She would say, “Put some pants on!” So, with this coming-of-age story, I was replicating what I know from my childhood.
Are you concerned that people will think you are pandering to gays?
I am not sure if that was something in the very back of my head. People will say, “He is gay, so this is where they went.” Not sure if there is some truth there. I cannot direct if there is no truth there.
The clip of Zac in his underwear dancing with Nicole has gone viral.
Read more: Isoul Harris, Huffington Post
