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Zane Phillips reveals how he overcame body insecurities & rejection
The Fire Island and Glamorous heartthrob opened up about the personal and professional challenges he faced before breaking out as an actor.
It’s been a long road for Zane Phillips to get to where he is.
Best known for starring in Legacies, Fire Island, Glamorous, and Good Trouble, Phillips penned an essay recently for Men’s Health discussing not only his journey in showbiz, but also the obstacles he had to overcome growing up.
“I have had a really poor relationship with my body from a very early age,” the actor wrote. “I think it has to do with being queer, too, but male body insecurity in general is this weird insidious thing where it's never spoken aloud. I've been unhappy with myself and thought, ‘Well that's because something’s wrong with me.’”
As he became an adult and sought out a career in acting, Phillips began to notice that he’d attach too much power to his failures and successes. He wrote, “As I was nearing the end of my time in college, I kept on saying, ‘I don’t feel talented enough for New York, and I don’t feel hot enough for L.A.’”
Phillips specifically recalled auditioning for the Broadway production of Wicked five times and being told repeatedly that his singing needed more work. “It was definitely not easy to hear that rejection because I felt that inside myself,” he recalled.
Thankfully, Phillips has learned to advocate for himself, understand what his actual objectives were, and go after what he wanted and needed, as opposed to taking “whatever people would give” him.
“The negative aspects in life have ultimately taught me to look for the positives,” the actor wrote. “Struggling with your own ambition is its own battle, but I think that is something fundamental to my core.”
We love seeing this level of vulnerability from LGBTQ+ celebrities, particularly men, as we don’t always feel encouraged to open up like this to the public.
You can read Zane Phillips’ full story — as written by Sean Abrams — on Men’s Health.
Glamorous is now streaming on Netflix.
Bernardo Sim is the deputy editor of Out, as well as a writer and content creator. Born in Brazil, he currently lives in South Florida. You can follow him on Instagram at @bernardosim.
Bernardo Sim is the deputy editor of Out, as well as a writer and content creator. Born in Brazil, he currently lives in South Florida. You can follow him on Instagram at @bernardosim.
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