Eddie Redmayne says playing trans character in 'The Danish Girl' "was a mistake"

"I wouldn't take it on now"

Eddie Redmayne has opened up about his regrets playing the lead character, who is trans, in 'The Danish Girl'.

Eddie Redmayne earned an Oscar nomination for his performance in the 2016 drama.

He won the Best Actor Oscar the year before for playing Stephen Hawking in 'The Theory of Everything'.

'The Danish Girl' is based on the life of Lili Elbe, who was one of the first people in the world to undergo gender reassignment surgery.

The film was criticised for casting a cisgender actor in a trans role.

In an interview with The Sunday Times (via Variety), Eddie Redmayne expressed his regrets about taking on the role.

"No, I wouldn’t take it on now," the actor said. "I made that film with the best intentions, but I think it was a mistake.

"The bigger discussion about the frustrations around casting is because many people don’t have a chair at the table.

"There must be a levelling, otherwise we are going to carry on having these debates."

Redmayne currently stars opposite Irish actress Jessie Buckley in 'Cabaret' at London’s Playhouse Theatre.

He is also the lead in the 'Fantastic Beasts' series, the next installment of which is due to hit screens in 2022.