When Colman Domingo chooses projects, he isn’t looking to be pigeonholed by his sexuality and identity.

That’s why the Oscar-nominated actor recently told GQ that he sometimes questions the scripts that come across his desk at his production company Edith, which he co-runs with his husband Raúl Domingo.

“The two things that I constantly get sent are about slavery and being queer,” he explained. “And I always think, ‘So why are you sending me this, if this isn’t even any of my interests, really?’”

Domingo, an openly gay Black-Latin filmmaker and actor, added that he’s more drawn to writing and producing stories that “have a lot of light in them.”

Domingo will forever be grateful for his serious roles, like his portrayal of civil rights activist Bayard Rustin in 2023’s Rustin, for which he got his first Oscar nomination.

My Oscar Book:

“I like that I’m known for gravitas. If, at the end of the day, people want to know me for gravitas, I’ll take that,” he said. “Because some people wish they could be known for gravitas. … And there’s no way they could have gravitas.”

How sexuality is perceived in the industry?

“I would always be confused with the people who were suddenly honored because they came out after a long time of being in the closet. And they came out, and suddenly they’re given the keys to the city. They’re getting more access, they’re getting honors and awards and things like this.”

“After a while, you sit there with your own feelings, you’re like, but what about the people who just have been out, who’ve been taking possible knocks or lack of access?” Domingo continued. “And no one’s giving them any praise or awards for that?”