Eddie Redmayne Discusses Previous 'Problematic' Roles He's Accepted & What He 'Learned' From Them

Eddie Redmayne reflected on some of the “problematic” roles that he’s played in the past.

The 42-year-old actor earned an Oscar nomination for his portrayal of a trans character in 2015′s The Danish Girl. However, his casting was controversial as he is cisgender.

While on the Podcrushed podcast, Eddie explained that he “learned [his] lesson” after the experience, adding that it informed how he approached his role in Cabaret, where he played a character that has been portrayed as queer.

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If you forgot, Eddie was cast as the Emcee for a West End production of Cabaret. He went on to reprise the role on Broadway.

“I have a history of parts that I’ve played, that have been problematic in some of those choices, and I’ve spent a lot of time ruminating on those things and wondering what I would do differently,” Eddie admitted, via EW. “When it came to Cabaret, I’d learned my lesson, and I didn’t take the part on without knowing exactly what I was doing.”

He continued, explaining, “I think when I was cast, people assumed that I was gonna be doing — and because of the work that I’d done previously — that I was taking an iconically queer role, and whilst I absolutely understand that discussion, I also think that that character is descriptionless and deserves any form of interpretation.”

“I was upset by the backlash when it was announced, but I had faith in my own take on the role,” he said, noting that “there is no character description” for the Emcee. since he was “created for the musical” and does not exist in the source material.

Eddie noted that the role has been more queer-coded in certain interpretations. However, he viewed him differently.

If you missed it, Eddie recently provided an update on the future of his Fantastic Beasts franchise.