Colin Firth is undecided whether straight actors should play gay characters

Actor previously earned an Oscar nomination for his portrayal of a gay character in ‘A Single Man’

Colin Firth has said that he remains undecided on whether it is right for straight actors to portray gay characters.

Firth will be starring opposite Stanley Tucci as a gay couple in the forthcoming film Supernova. The drama focuses on the two men who embark on a road trip together after Tucci’s character is diagnosed with early-onset dementia.

During an interview with Attitude, the actor was questioned on whether he believed it was right for him, a straight man, to take on a gay role.

Firth declined to give an opinion either way. The 60-year-old said: “I don’t have a final position on this. I think the question is still alive.

“It’s something I take really seriously and I gave it a lot of thought before doing this.”

Firth starred opposite Julianne Moore in ‘A Single Man’ as George Falconer

In 2009’s’s critically acclaimed drama A Single Man, Firth also portrayed a gay character. The role earned him an Academy Award nomination the following year.

He continued: “Whenever I take on anything, I think it’s an insufferable presumption. I don’t really feel I have the right to play the character. That’s always the starting point. What do I know about this person’s life?"

“How can I presume to set foot in this person’s lived experience, let alone try to represent it?” said the Kingsman star.

His co-star Tucci added: “For so many years, gay men and women have had to hide their homosexuality in showbusiness to get the roles they wanted – that’s the problem here.

“Anybody should be able to play any role that they want to play – that’s the whole point of acting.”