Sex Education star Gillian Anderson is ‘thrilled’ to have made a generation of people gay
Gillian Anderson knows she turns people gay and she’s OK with that. (Getty/Stephane Cardinale-Corbis)
Gillian Anderson is very much aware that she is responsible for making a generation of people gay, and she’s thrilled about it.
The actress has addressed what fans refer to as her “legacy” of giving people their queer “awakening”.
Anderson’s statement of accountability came following a meme shared on Twitter, which featured a woman labelled “Gillian Anderson made me gay” high-fiving a line of people referred to as “Gen X-Files”, “X-Files bisexuals“, “Elder millennials”, “Millennials and late bloomers who watched The Fall” and “Gen Z Jean Millburn MILF cohort”.
The labels refer to Anderson’s roles as FBI Special Agent Dana Scully in ‘90s sci-fi drama The X-Files, bisexual Stella Gibson in BBC Two’s The Fall, and beloved sex therapist Jean Milburn in Netflix’s Sex Education.
The not-so-subtle suggestion is that her characters over the years have had a very particular influence on queer women.
It’s unlikely, however, that her role as Margaret Thatcher in The Crown would have opened up any sapphic tendencies among viewers.
The meme was captioned with: “Thank you, Gillian, your legacy stays winning.”
Anderson responded with the brief but affirmative message: “Always thrilled to be of service.”
She finished off her message with two emojis: the wink and the rainbow flag, in the spirit of Pride month.
The original tweet and Anderson’s acknowledgement have gone down a storm with a very specific sphere of sapphic social media, with fans flocking to the comment section to share exactly how Anderson turned them gay.
One shared a clip of Anderson’s Stella Gibson going in for what was her first on-screen kiss with a woman, captioning it: “Lives were changed.”
Another wrote: “Stella Gibson truly is a mother to many. I am one of the many she birthed.”
A third said: “It’s me. I am X-Files bisexuals. I’m going to go cry now, this is the most I have ever felt included in queer discourse.”
Even Glee‘s Jane Lynch joined in, admitting that it was Anderson who confirmed her sexuality.
While Anderson has said she is an “actively heterosexual woman”, she has also revealed that she has had relationships with women before, and would be open to being with another woman in the future.
She is also a staunch ally, having supported US LGBTQ+ charity The Trevor Project for several years.
Last year, she sent fans wild by thirsting over American Horror Story actress Sarah Paulson, much to the surprise of Paulson’s long-term partner Holland Taylor.
