Cynthia Nixon can’t seem to stay out the news lately.
First, she’s making controversial comments about homosexuality , and now the former Sex and the City glamor-girl has debuted a new look- completely shaving her signature red locks and rocking a totally bald look. And not a pixie cut, or a Sinead O’Connor “Nothing Compares 2 u” short-short buzz, girlfriend has gone bald-cap bald.
Of course, Nixon has good reason to court press attention right now- the actress is starring in the Broadway play “Wit,” about a professor suffering the final stages of ovarian cancer. And the role is likely bittersweet for Nixon, a breast cancer survivor herself. Nixon debuted the look this morning on the chat show Live With Kelly.
As Nixon prepares to premiere on Broadway Thursday night, controversy has continued to swirl around her comments late last week surrounding the origin of homosexuality. While many argue that the orientation is a choice, it is relatively well-accepted most people are either born gay or born straight. Nixon, however, thinks that being gay is sometimes a choice, and said in her case, it was. She explained:
I gave a speech recently, an empowerment speech to a gay audience, and it included the line “I’ve been straight and I’ve been gay, and gay is better.’” And they tried to get me to change it, because they said it implies that homosexuality can be a choice. And for me, it is a choice. I understand that for many people it’s not, but for me it’s a choice, and you don’t get to define my gayness for me. A certain section of our community is very concerned that it not be seen as a choice, because if it’s a choice, then we could opt out. I say it doesn’t matter if we flew here or we swam here, it matters that we are here and we are one group and let us stop trying to make a litmus test for who is considered gay and who is not.
But Nixon believes that whether homosexuality is a choice or a pre-destined attribute, it shouldn’t matter and to denigrate it as a choice lends credence to anti-gay rhetoric:
Why can’t it be a choice? Why is that any less legitimate? It seems we’re just ceding this point to bigots who are demanding it, and I don’t think that they should define the terms of the debate. I also feel like people think I was walking around in a cloud and didn’t realize I was gay, which I find really offensive. I find it offensive to me, but I also find it offensive to all the men I’ve been out with.
Do you think Nixon is working overtime to garner PR?
