Billy Dee Williams Clarifies His Comments On Gender Fluidity

An Interview That Started Conversation

In an interview with Esquire, Star Wars star Billy Dee Williams opened up about how he embraces male and female pronounces.

"And you see I say ‘himself’ and ‘herself,’ because I also see myself as feminine as well as masculine. I’m a very soft person. I’m not afraid to show that side of myself."

The interviewer pointed out that Donald Glover wanted to bring that kind of gender fluidity to his portrayal of Lando Calrissian in Solo, and Williams was thrilled.

"Really? That kid is brilliant—just look at those videos."

This statement opened up a ton of discussion online with many praising the 82-year-old actor for embracing gender fluidity.

Clarification Of The Term

However, in a new interview with The Undefeated, Williams clarified his comments on his pronouns, admitting that he wasn't familiar with the term "gender fluidity."

"Well, first of all, I asked last night. I said, ‘What the hell is gender fluid?’ That’s a whole new term.

But what I was talking about was about men getting in touch with their softer side of themselves."

Williams continued, encouraging people to read philosopher Carl Jung.

"There’s a phrase that was coined by Carl G. Jung, who was a psychiatrist, who was a contemporary of Sigmund Freud, and they had a splitting of the ways because they had different ideas about the … what do you call it? Consciousness. Unconscious. It’s collective unconsciousness. But he coined a phrase that’s, ‘Anima animus.’ And anima means that is the female counterpart of the male self, and the animus is the male counterpart of the female."

He's Not Gay

Williams clarified, explaining that he wasn't talking about sex or gender.

"So, that’s what I was referring to. I was talking about men getting in touch with the female side of themselves. I wasn’t talking about sex, I wasn’t talking about being gay or straight. People should read [Jung]. I mean, it would be an interesting education for a lot of people."

He also explained that he isn't gay himself.

"No, no, no, I’m not gay — by any stretch of the imagination. Not that I have anything against gay people. But personally? Not gay."

He's Proud Of 'Rise Of Skywalker'

Williams also opened up about returning to the role of Lando Calrissian for The Rise of Skywalker.

"He’s an interesting character. I think he’s bigger than life. I think people like rogues – charming rogues in particular — and I think that certainly he has those qualities. He’s a bit dubious, which always makes the character a little bit more interesting, but he’s honorable at the same time."

Will Star Wars fans enjoy the final installment? Williams is confident.

"I just hope people will like it. I don’t even hope. I know that people are really going to enjoy it. Besides all the adventure, there’s a lot of very sensitive moments in this whole experience. So, I think that the people are going to be deeply touched as well as being highly entertained."