Knock at the Cabin star Ben Aldridge is transitioning to Hollywood leading man as a proud gay actor
Ben Aldridge will star in queer horror film Knock at the Cabin (Theo Wargo/Getty Images)
British actor Ben Aldridge will be starring in the new apocalyptic horror movie Knock at the Cabin by M Night Shyamalan, alongside Rupert Grint and Dave Bautista.
The terrifying movie stars Ben Aldridge and Jonathan Groff as a gay couple vacationing at a remote cabin with their daughter Wen (Kristen Cui) when they are confronted by a group of strangers who demand that they must sacrifice one family member to avert the coming apocalypse.
As the long-rumbling debate continues over LGBTQ+ roles being taken by straight, cis actors, it’s positive to note that both male leads, Aldridge and Groff are both out gay men.
Ahead of the film’s release in February, here’s everything you need to know about Ben Aldridge and Knock at the Cabin.
When did Ben Aldridge come out?
The 37-year-old Our Girl actor came out in a post on Instagram in June 2020, sharing a vintage photo of a Gay Liberation Front protest, and claiming he is “incredibly proud” to be part of the LGBTQ+ community.
“The journey to pride was a long one for me,” he wrote.
“I love the LGBTQ+ community and am incredibly proud and thankful to be a part of it. So much won. So much more to fight for.”
In a subsequent interview with Attitude, the actor explained that he had been worried coming out would impact his job opportunities as an actor, but after coming out as gay he felt “more alive” than ever.
“It was a thing that I was moving towards doing I think in the back of my mind,” he said.
“I didn’t realise how significant it was going to be until I did it and the weight that it lifted… I didn’t really realise there was a weight I was carrying with that, or that I was protecting something.
“I’ve felt the best I’ve ever felt. I’ve felt more alive, and more myself.”
What roles is he famous for?
As well as being hilariously credited as “arsehole guy” in the wildly popular Phoebe Waller-Bridge comedy Fleabag, Aldridge has also appeared in Our Girl, Pennyworth, Pramface, and alongside Jim Parsons in queer romance drama Spoiler Alert.
He also appeared in ITV crime drama The Long Call in 2021 as detective Matthew Venn, which was the first show in the UK to feature a gay, male detective as its lead.
Series director Lee Haven Jones said of Ben Aldridge’s casting: “As [it was] the UK’s first male gay detective on primetime, I was resolute that we should cast a gay actor.”
When is Knock at the Cabin coming out?
The latest M Night Shyamalan movie, which is adapted from the acclaimed 2018 horror novel The Cabin at the End of the World by Paul G Tremblay, will come out on 3 February 2023 in the UK and the US.
The end-of-the-world movie will see gay dads Andrew and Eric make a horrifying choice: either sacrifice one member of their “flawed and perfect” family, or allow the apocalypse to happen.
As Bautista’s character chillingly puts it: “For every ‘no’ you give us, hundreds of thousands of people are going to die”.
While we can’t give away too much of the plot, Bautista revealed on Twitter that the film will “have you on the edge of your seat”.
“I ain’t givin’ away no spoilers, but let me tell you, Knock at the Cabin is gonna have you on the edge of your seat until the very end,” he said.
Knock At The Cabin is due to be released in cinemas in the UK and the US on 3 February 2023.
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