Hayden Christensen Doesn't Mind Gay Rumors

Some actors, including Tom Cruise, have sued when a publication says they are gay. Not "Star Wars" actor Hayden Christensen whose sexuality has been much speculated about. When asked by Vman magazine why there is so much talk about whether he dates men or women, Christensen's answer was quite surprising: "To be honest, I think it's because I encourage it."

Christensen, so good in "Shattered Glass" and "Life as a House," added the following: "It's fun, entertaining, and a bit of a joke. Because, who cares what people think? And because I think it's sort of cool. You see pictures of Bowie wearing eyeliner and looking a little effeminate—to me masculinity is the ability to flirt with the effeminate. I will do things that are a little less masculine. There's plenty of rumors about every actor everywhere being gay. When people catch a picture of Sienna [Miller] and me, they can speculate, and I don't do anything to dismiss the speculations because rumors are more fun than reality. The less people know about you as you, the more they believe you as a character. And I guess I was sort of setting myself up with Star Wars, as far as people not accepting me as other things, so I made a point of not doing much press, not letting people know much, just because it helps me as an actor. The people I actually relate to know what I am. I think eventually people will clue in because there's less I will be able to keep private, but I've been pretty good at it so far. So if they want to speculate that I'm gay, let them. Honestly, I enjoy it more when people speculate."