In recent years, Nicholas Galitzine has become very beloved among queer audiences thanks to his roles in films like Red, White & Royal Blue and Bottoms.
Galitzine, who has been acting since he was 20, played gay men in both the 2023 Prime Video movie Red, White & Royal Blue and the 2024 Sky Atlantic historical drama series Mary & George. But the actor has also been involved in his fair share of popular heterosexual romances like The Idea of You about an older woman falling in love with the leader of a boy band, as well as Cinderella, and Purple Hearts. He plays a straight man in Bottoms, too — but that movie is so gay, even his character can’t be considered fully heterosexual.
So, what is Nicholas Galitzine’s sexual orientation?
Nicholas Galitzine is straight. The 29-year-old has opened up in the past about the implications of playing gay roles, saying “I felt a sense of uncertainty sometimes about whether I’m taking up someone’s space, and perhaps guilt.”
The discussion around straight actors and actresses playing gay characters has been a popular topic online for the last decade, but opinions vary wildly. Galitzine isn’t the first and most definitely will not be the last straight man to take on a queer role, not because he finds them particularly interesting, but because he finds them just as interesting as any other job.
“I see those characters as not solely their sexuality,” he told British GQ, adding that he hopes people take him seriously as a performer and don’t think of him as his characters, only. The actor has markedly played characters that tend to be defined by a typically attractive physical appearance.
“I’m not gonna ask you to cry me a river here, but it’s been difficult being part of a conversation that feels very much like I am a cut of beef at a meat market. I think that being my defining feature is something I’m constantly terrified of.”
Galitzine’s two biggest roles yet are curiously both Prime Video films. You can find both Red, White & Royal Blue (which is getting a sequel, by the way) and The Idea of You on the platform.