Ian McKellen Says Obi-Wan Kenobi Actor Alec Guinness Told Him to Stay Quiet on Gay Rights Because ‘It’s Unseemly for an Actor to Dabble in Political Affairs’

Ian McKellen revealed in a recent interview with The Guardian that Obi-Wan Kenobi actor Alec Guinness once advised him not to go public when it came to advocating for gay rights. Guinness allegedly told McKellen to “withdraw” his support for the U.K. gay rights lobby group Stonewall, which at the time was fighting for government protections to ensure gay citizens were treated equally under the law.

“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,” McKellen told the publication. “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, sort of pleaded with me, to withdraw. Advice from an older generation, which I didn’t follow.”

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McKellen said he was recently reminded about his encounter with McKellen after watching the touring play “Two Halves of Guinness,” a solo show that stars Zeb Soanes as the “Star Wars” actor and, according to McKellen, “hints at Sir Alec’s latent bisexuality in a way that would have upset him, I suppose.”

“Lord of the Rings” and “X-Men” icon McKellen publicly came out as gay in 1988 at 48 years old during a radio interview on BBC. He told The Times of London last year that he feels sorry for fellow actors who feel like they can’t come out as gay and encouraged closeted stars to reconsider.

“I have never met anybody who came out who regretted it,” McKellen said. “I feel sorry for any famous person who feels they can’t come out. Being in the closet is silly — there’s no need for it. Don’t listen to your advisers, listen to your heart. Listen to your gay friends who know better. Come out. Get into the sunshine.”

McKellen observed at the time that there’s never been an openly gay Oscar winner for best actor, nor has there been an openly gay U.K. Prime Minister or Premier League soccer player.

“In women’s sport it’s not an issue,” he said. “I would imagine young footballers are probably, like actors, getting very bad advice from agents who are worried about their own incomes. But the first Premier League footballer to come out will become the most famous footballer in the world, with all the agencies begging for his name on their products.””

McKellen most recently starred in “The Christophers,” the latest feature from Steven Soderbergh.