“Pronouns do not define me,” the actor and comedian says.
WithSix Minutes to Midnight,Eddie Izzardis making her feature film writing debut.
And playing the male lead.
Eddie Izzard in ‘Six Minutes to Midnight’.IFC Films
“I came out 35 years ago.
The pronouns isn’t the thing,” Izzard tells EW.
“Pronouns do not define me.
So I’m not going to make a big deal.”
Which only further stresses how minor an issue she finds it.
“Everyone should calm down on this,” she says.
“Because I’m playing a male role, I give people permission for whatever they wish.
Just call me Eddie or whatever.
This shouldn’t be the big deal.
It’s not the be-all and end-all of what being trans or LGBT is about.
It shouldn’t be the thing that trips us up.
It’s trying to get people to live and let live.”
Izzard was inspired by her own family.
“They were all German girls learning English,” she explains.
Though she’s written her own stand-up for years, Izzard says penning a film was quite difficult.
“My stand-up, I don’t even write it,” she says.
And it’s always been a dream to write a film (and herself a meaty role).
“It’s been tricky for me writing,” she admits.
“I really have to pull it out of me.
Still, she hopes to write two more films in the immediate future.
Izzard champions her film’s history lesson, while also expressing chagrin at how relevant it has become.
“It wasn’t even resonating that much, and then [Donald] Trump came in.
It shows that it doesn’t go away.
When World War II was won, those Nazis went quiet.
They did not implode, they just went quiet.”
She adds, “If you do not learn from history, we are doomed to repeat it.
And we’re trying to say it’s not good, you’ve got to know about this stuff.
It now sits as very much a film for our time.”
Six Minutes to Midnighthits theaters and PVOD on March 26.
