Hunky star of gay rugby movie ‘In From The Side’ confirms he is “not straight” – Queerty
Yup, he’s playing for our team!
Alexander Lincoln is a rising film and television star who popped up on our radar last year with his role in the British romance In From The Side, a.k.a. the “gay rugby movie.”
From writer-director Matt Carter, the acclaimed indie tells the story of two rugby players who fall in love. The only problem is, they’re both in relationships, and their secret affair threatens to tear their lives apart—and their teams.
Related: Get ready to fall in love with the handsome stars of gay rugby drama ‘In From The Side’
Lincoln is fantastic as newbie player Mark who hooks up with his club’s MVP Warren (Alexander King) after a drunken night out. The actor’s stellar work in In From The Side landed him on the longlist for the British Independent Film Awards’ (BIFA) Breakthrough Performance category, which he belatedly celebrated with an Instagram post back in November:
“I was truly honored to have been included,” Lincoln wrote in the caption. “Infinitely proud of this film and what it continues to do and how it continues to resonate with audiences.”
Fans took to the comments to share their support for the actor and love of the film, but one called into question its authenticity earlier this week, writing, “I loved the movie and its actors are still very handsome but I still think that the actors are posing as gay but they are not. Is it my doubt?”
While politely worded, their question does call to mind what happened to Heartstopper star Kit Connor (and many others), where viewers continually pressed him on his sexuality, accusing him of queer-baiting for playing a queer character while not being open about his own sexuality.
Related: Evicted from the closet: 8 times queer celebrities were outed by their own allies
Still, Lincoln took the time to thoughtfully address the comment, replying, “Thanks so much—really appreciate it!!!! And no, I’m not straight.”
This is one of the first times the actor has publicly addressed his sexuality, so the comment’s been generating some attention. One follower praised his courage, while another thanked Lincoln and wrote, “Seeing you say it here on Instagram means a lot more than you know.”
And though Lincoln may be a fresh new face to those of us stateside, audiences in the U.K. are very familiar with the actor. Between 2019 and 2021, he appeared in nearly 300 episodes of the popular British soap, Emmerdale. According to The Sun, he left the show after his character, Jamie Tate, tried to poison his own mother and then had his car driven into a lake, presumably dead and never to be seen again. Wait, this sounds campy… should we be watching?
But with Emmerdale behind him, hopefully that frees Lincoln up to take on more exciting gay projects like In From The Side in the future. We certainly won’t complain about seeing more of this exciting queer star on our screens!
In From The Side opened across the pond in 2022, but is set for a U.S. release on January 20, 2023, via Strand Releasing. You can watch its latest trailer below:
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