Chris Colfer to Star in Noel Coward Biopic

Glee star and out actor Chris Colfer will star as gay writer Noel Coward in an upcoming film, reports Screen Daily. The movie is scripted by Martin Sherman, who also penned the gay Holocaust drama Bent. Ian McKellen, who worked with Sherman on the original British production of Bent, is in negotiations to join the cast. The film is scheduled to begin production later this summer.

Early Wednesday morning Colfer posted a photo of Coward to his Instagram account.

Born in 1899, Coward became famous for his sharp wit and humor in plays such as Design for Living and Blithe Spirit. Several plays have been adapted for film, and they continue to be revived today. Recently, a revival of Blithe Spirit nabbed Angela Lansbury a Tony Award for Best Featured Actress, while Sex and the City's Kim Cattrall headlined a production of Private Lives.

While Coward believed that his private life should be kept out of the limelight, his sexuality was never hidden, and he famously quipped that "there are still a few old ladies in Worthing who don't know." Coward maintained a relationship with actor Graham Payn for decades until the writer's death in 1973.