Patrick Stewart’s brilliant response to being mistakenly outed as gay

The Guardian mistakenly outed actor Patrick Stewart after he posted a tweet congratulating Ellen Page for coming out at the Human Rights Campaign (HRC) in Las Vegas.

“@EllenPage thank you @HRC for all the love and support. X and I’ll chime in with mine,” Stewart wrote, referring to Professor Xavier, his X-Men character.

The Guardian misinterpreted the tweet and in an article about Page’s coming out wrote, “Some gay people, such as Sir Patrick Stewart, think Page’s coming out speech is newsworthy because a high-profile and surprisingly politically aware young actress has decided not to play by the rules that so many closeted Hollywood actors are advised to follow if they are to enjoy mainstream success.”

Stewart handled the blunder perfectly, jokingly tweeting, “@guardian I have, like, five or even SEVEN hetero friends and we totally drink beer and eat lots of chicken wings!”

Followed by, “Well, @guardian it makes for a nice change . . . at least I didn’t wake up to the internet telling me I was dead again.”

Long live Professor X!

Keep Reading

The best queer and trans movies of 2025

Films like “Sorry, Baby” and “The Wedding Banquet” made the year worth watching
The cover of the Book of Luke; Lovell Holder

This ‘Survivor’-inspired book shows how far gay fiction has come

The queer themes in “The Book of Luke” texture the plot, but they don’t define it. It’s part of a welcome trend toward complex queer stories
Mya Foxx with an up arrow behind her; PM with a down arrow behind her

‘Canada’s Drag Race’ Season 6, Episode 3 power ranking: Big Sister

Social strategy comes into play in a big way—but does it pay off?
Icesis Couture and Pythia behind podiums

‘Canada’s Drag Race’ Season 6, Episode 3 recap: Pick your drag poison

Season 6’s top 11 queens get to choose their own adventure: Snatch Game or design challenge?