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The actor and musician discusses his experiences with HIV, financial difficulties during the Hollywood strikes, and his disagreement with a well-known Vogue cover.
Billy Porter entered the Golden Globes red carpet in January 2019 wearing two pairs of Gucci slippers and a matching silver cape. With a flourish, he flung his arms up to show a massive swathe of fuchsia satin. Elisabeth Moss, who was standing next to him, was powerless to stop him from stealing the show; the next day's headlines referred to his entrance as a "cultural moment."
Soon after, Porter received an invitation to the Oscars, and for the occasion, she chose a black velvet gown with a hemline to rival Deborah Kerr's outfit from The King and I. He's ordering a second glass of Mot in the rooftop bar of a London hotel while looking stunning in a gold metallic outfit and knee-high boots. "That was the moment that changed everything, not only for me but for the entire world," he adds.
Success tales in Hollywood typically fall into one of two categories: a meteoric climb or a gradual burn. Regarding Porter, neither quite fulfills the criteria. The 53-year-old has achieved popularity late in life. He is an actor, music performer, and screenwriter with an Emmy, Grammy, and Tony to his credit (he is one Oscar short of the coveted Egot). After finding early success on Broadway in the 1990s with supporting roles in shows including Grease, Little Shop of Horrors, and Miss Saigon, he was out of employment for more than ten years before returning with Kinky Boots in 2013.
The industry has changed much too slowly; for many years, his "queerness" was a barrier. These days, he might be best recognized for his leading role in Pose, the award-winning drama series about drag queens in 1980s New York (in which critics praised him as the highlight performance).
"Both allies and detractors warned me that being queer would make me vulnerable. With a defiant expression in his eyes, he continues, "And it was, for decades. But either you discover [the urge] or you perish on the vine. No actual options exist. I decide to choose life. I'll always go with life.
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It's a mindset he developed early on since being out in Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania, in the 1970s wasn't always easy. I was expelled from my church and told I would never be blessed.
There were no black LGBT role models, and it wasn't until he was in his twenties that he learned about the writer and civil rights fighter James Baldwin, the part he will soon play in a biopic. He is now held in high regard "because I demand it".
It's difficult to image Porter ever finding it difficult to demand respect with his smoky Pennsylvania drawl and contagious confidence (he tells me he wants to sound "thin and important" in this piece). On the other hand, he claims, "With my first mainstream album, when it imploded, I realized that I had failed as somebody else." His new disco album Black Mona Lisa will be his first since 1997, and if his track Fashion is any indication, it will finally be authentic.
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He has been in London for three weeks now and is enjoying every second of being away from his home country, where his divorce is imminent and the Hollywood summer of strikes dominates the news. Porter is optimistic about their effects but believes the UK is a superior country for artists. "All of you value the arts. No matter a person's social [background], the arts exist. This is not America, which is why we are on strike. "They think they can just do it with anyone... and we ought to be receiving six-cent checks.
Porter's success hasn't brought him financial stability. "I currently have to list my home. And I'm one of the fortunate people who works continuously. I'm still living check to check. That won't alter until he earns enough money to "f--- you," he declares. And I haven't even made you any money yet, I'll be there soon.
He is in London to meet theatre producers, which is partially motivated by money. "I need to take action in the West End now. My name should now appear above the title.
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| For his performance in Kinky Boots in 2013, Billy Porter received a Tony Award. CREDIT: Walter McBride/Corbis via Getty Images |
He co-produced the Jennifer Hudson-starring play A Strange Loop, which premiered at the Barbican in June. Claire Allfree of The Daily Telegraph called the play "a musical for our times, a slickly tender, affirmative exploration of otherness." His favorite theater environment is in Britain because it "gets to experiment more" and "your government respects the arts...those expansive ideas are subsidised by the government." In America, they are an expense.
He does have a complaint about the cost of our programs, which is a pertinent comment that coincides with David Tennant's criticism of the exorbitant cost of theater tickets this week. After giving you $100, I shouldn't have to spend $15 to find out who is in the play. Playbills are free in America. "I'd want a two-page pamphlet with inserts of the understudies, please. It doesn't cost that much. It shows a terrible lack of respect for the work we do.
Nobody knows your name unless you're a celebrity and people are traveling to visit you, right? We perform eight shows per week, f---. It is unfair. That is not to my taste.
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| Billy Porter said, "I'm one of the lucky ones, but I'm still living paycheck to paycheck," during the 2020 Bafta Tea Party. Emma McIntyre/BAFTA Los Angeles |
It doesn't take long in Porter's company to realize that he is a trailblazer. Oscar Isaac has made a pleated kilt his go-to red carpet outfit, and in the four years since that "moment" on the red carpet, Harry Styles has graced the cover of Vogue in a frothy floor-length gown, Brad Pitt wore a messianic skirt to a premiere, Oscar Isaac has made a pleated kilt his go-to red carpet outfit, and the annual Met Gala has quickly turned into a competition for who can arrive in
But he was annoyed by the Harry Styles cover. He had recently conducted a Q&A with Anna Wintour in front of Condé Nast employees. "That b--- asked me, "How can we do better?" at the conclusion. And because I was caught off guard, I didn't say what I ought to have.
What was it? "Use your influence as Vogue to elevate the voices of this de-gendering of fashion movement's leaders... Harry Styles is the first man to appear on the cover six months later.
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| PHOTO CREDIT: Jordan Strauss/Invision/AP Billy Porter at the 2020 Academy Awards |
Styles isn't the issue (Porter sent him flowers "as an apology" after he first expressed displeasure with the cover). Harry Styles's whiteness, cuteness, and sexual orientation make him a good fit for the system, but it is not his fault. I summon the guardians.
Porter doesn't assert that she is "the first" to promote gender norms in society. "I know Sylvester existed, and I know David Bowie existed."
However, Styles is straight and "white." He is on the cover because of this. Non-binary, etc., etc. No. I don't feel comfortable with it. You're elevating yourself by using my community—or your people are doing it for you. You didn't have to make any sacrifices.
Porter acknowledged that he had HIV in 2021. He claims that the reaction was generally positive. I didn't hear anything bad, but I don't dig around since I'm not that person. To get this off my chest, I did it.
It gave him a sense of "freedom" to finally "say and do anything that I want" after discussing it in public. "I don't have any fears whatsoever... Everyone already is aware of everything.
He hopes that being "an open book" will cause people to pay attention to his work. My undisputed work. Whether or not you play my record, My entire life has been filled with doors slamming in my face. I'm still here, too.
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