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6 October 2025

“I’ve been playing gay characters since the ‘90s when
agents told you, ‘Don’t do that.’ Honestly, if I’d been offered more
straight roles that were exciting, I would have done them.”
– Tuc Watkins talks about his acting career.

Every week, people ask me about the Feds’ case against gay porn superstar Austin Wolf. And I finally have an answer. Way back in June of 2024, his home was raided by the FBI, and they allegedly seized hundreds of photos and videos of underage lads. After numerous delays, he finally had his first (and, apparently, last) hearing in June where he took full responsibility for having sex with a 15-year-old. Oh, it gets worse. Last week, U.S. District Judge Engelmayer found him guilty of enticement of a minor to engage in illegal sexual activity and a pattern of prohibited sexual conduct. He was sentenced to 19 years in prison. Then it was revealed that he “targeted kids as young as seven”. At one point, he made plans with another man to have sex with a “nine-year-old child that Male-2 claimed to be babysitting”. He also made “plans to meet an individual who claimed to be the father of a seven-year-old child and who offered to make the child available.” Sounds like the worst Chris Hansen episode ever!

In a somewhat related story, the NYPD is cracking down on sex in a Penn Station men’s room. Reportedly, over 200 arrests have been made since June, while only a dozen happened in the first half of the year. Why the increase? It must be the heat! Before you ask, I’ll tell you that facilities in question are near the entrance by Eighth Avenue and 31^st Street. You’re welcome! We hear the room continues to be a hotspot. Must be the smell of urinal cakes.

After months of waiting, the fate of Mid-Century Modern is known. The Nathan Lane, Matt Bomer, Nathan Lee Graham, and Linda Lavin-led gay Golden Girls has been officially cancelled. Could things have turned out differently if Lavin lived? Or if Billy Lourde wasn’t cast as Matt’s daughter? Or if Richard Kind and Zane Phillips appeared more often? Or if it had been on a real network? Who can say. Well, I can say it wouldn’t have hurt. I’m told everyone had a ball making it, and isn’t that really the best one can hope for when a show is on Hulu?

Every so often, people like to count Bette Midler out. “She’s at a difficult age to cast,” I often hear. And then, poof, the perfect role. She’s just signed on to play a plumb part of a rich matriarch who cuts off her kids’ cash in the upcoming Warner Bros. film Cut Off. The kids in question will be played by Kristen Wiig and Jonah Hill (who co-wrote and will direct the flick). Did I mention Bette’s husband will be played by Nathan Lane? Yes, an Isn’t She Great reunion. Hopefully they fare better this time around. Shooting just started last week.

You know the type of actors who have even less chance of getting cast than Bette Midler? Dead actors, that’s who! But Terence Stamp didn’t let a little thing like his demise stop him from appearing in Priscilla, Queen of the Desert 2. For years, Hugo Weaving and Guy Pearce were ready to do a sequel, while Terry was the lone holdout. Then director Stephan Elliott brought him a script that put a smile on his face. He said, “OK, I didn’t see that one coming”. Over the next few months, Elliott had the actor working day and night to finish his scenes. Stamp repeatedly said, “You’re running out of time, kids. You’re running out of time.” But they finished the entire script. While it’s not the first time an actor has worked in a vacuum (I mean, Sigourney’s entire oeuvre), Stamp insisted that he play Bernadette and not have a performance created by AI. Elliott filmed all of the Bernadette scenes “in a nine-camera array of the entire script”. The rest of the cast plans shoot in in early 2026.

Some things are universal. Like comedy – everyone likes to laugh (well, maybe not El Presidente). Last week, there was a huge comedy festival in Saudi Arabia where they paid comics “a shitload of money” (at least, that’s what it said in my contract). Some comedians went, others stayed home out of protest. On Real Time, Louis C.K. told Bill Maher, “There is a woman who is a lesbian and Jewish who did a show there and she got a standing ovation.” He was referring to our own Jessica Kirson, who I don’t know personally but I’m a huge fan. She did indeed perform there and, as LCK said, was a big hit. But she also took a hit from her fans here in the US, who felt as a woman, as a lesbian, and as a Jew, she shouldn’t have gone. People certainly have the right to criticize, but they should know that Jessica did her research. Here’s what she said after the event: “As an artist, my mission has always been to help people feel less alone. As an openly gay person, when I was asked to perform in Riyadh, I was surprised. I requested a guarantee that I could be openly out as a lesbian on stage and perform gay material. I hoped that this could help LGBTQ+ people in Saudi Arabia feel seen and valued. I am grateful that I was able to do precisely that – to my knowledge, I am the first openly gay comic to talk about it on stage in Saudi Arabia. I received messages from attendees sharing how much it meant to them to participate in a gay-affirming event.”

So, win/win, right? Wrong. Fans were outraged that she performed at an event supported by the Saudi government. “To my fans: I see you. I hear you. Your voice matters to me. I love you all, and I am genuinely sorry for making a poor decision that had repercussions I didn’t fully consider. I will take full responsibility for my actions and dedicate myself to making amends, so that my words and choices reflect the respect and care you deserve.” What about the gay people in Saudi Arabia who finally got to see themselves represented onstage? What about giving a voice to a different side of a repressed society? Then again, how repressed can they be if they booked Jessica in the first place? Should Pete Buttigieg not appear on FOX News because they are conservative? Or aren’t those the very people he should reach out to? While I recognize this is a tricky situation, I agree with Jessica’s first instinct to go, and feel she indeed made a big impact. However, she’s now vowed to donate whatever she was paid to “to a human rights organization. I made this decision because I want that money to go to an organization that can help combat these severe issues.” While I think she can do whatever she wants, she certainly shouldn’t feel obligated to do anything other than keep the money she made for performing. Just my two cents – which I’m giving out for free.

Not Broadway’s Mark MacKillop is a good friend of this column and of Billy Masters LIVE. As you know, he’s a tireless fundraiser for our community, and has been the highest fundraiser at Broadway Bares for eight consecutive years. He’s the hoofer with a heart of gold. On October 13^th, he’s marking his birthday by putting on a show at the Marjorie S. Deane Little Theatre in NYC. Proceeds will go to Broadway Cares/Equity Fights AIDS. If seeing Mark in his birthday suit (and me in the audience) appeals to you, grab some tickets at OvationTix.com.

In a very brief Ask Billy question, Lenny in Pittsburgh, PA writes, “Who gave Lukas Gage an STD? He recently told a reporter he got it from an ex. Was it his ex-husband?”

First, let’s me correct you – he didn’t catch an STD. He caught TWO STDs from a former partner. This either means that he’s terribly unlucky, or there is some fault in his screening process for potential paramours. He didn’t reveal who gave him the STDs or, for that matter, what they were. But he says it’s not his fault. “It wasn’t that I was in an opposition to having a non-monogamous relationship, it was just not talked about.” Whose fault would that be? Does anyone have a mirror? If you don’t discuss it, don’t assume it. I’m sure more delightful anecdotes like this will pop up in the 30-year-old’s memoir, I Wrote This For Attention, which comes out on October 14^th.

When Lukas at least came up with the perfect title for his autobiography, we’ve definitely come to the end of yet another column. Talk about truth in advertising. Sure, Gage will say it’s all tongue in cheek – but I think we can all agree he should be a bit more discriminatory with which cheeks he puts his tongue! For more visual aids, check out www.BillyMasters.com – the site site ain’t shy. If you want me to look into something, dash a note off to Billy@BillyMasters.com and I promise to get back to you before I invite anyone over for some “lemonade”. So, until next time, remember, one man’s filth is another man’s bible.

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