'Beside Still Waters' Director Chris Lowell On Featuring A Gay Character That Wasn't 'Over The Top'

Why 'Beside Still Waters' Director Chose Not To Tell Actors His Movie's Character Was Gay

The cast and creative team behind the new film "Beside Still Waters" appeared on HuffPost Live this week, with director Chris Lowell explaining his approach to including a gay character in his movie.

"There's kind of this void in pop culture [in terms of how] homosexuality is portrayed," Lowell said of the character of Tom (played by Beck Bennett). "I was so sick and tired of seeing foppish, over-the-top, broad characters that were...becoming sort of the industry standard of what a gay man or a gay woman looked like."

The director chose not to include "gay" in the description of the character in the initial script, because he "didn't want actors coming in and auditioning and doing their version of 'gay.' It shouldn't matter."

Bennett says he agreed with Lowell's approach to the role.

"I was just interested in men," he said of his performance.

Check out the trailer for "Beside Still Waters" below:

CORRECTION: The original version of this article incorrectly identified the director as "Chris Powell."

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