Andrew Scott calls reaction to Fleabag's Hot Priest 'absolutely f***ing mental'

‘I think what’s really insidious is that people don’t ask you about sex,’ says actor

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Andrew Scott has opened up about the reaction to his character in the second season of Phoebe Waller-Bridge’s Fleabag, which was dubbed “the hot priest”.

In an interview with The Times, the actor was asked what he made of the fetishisation of priests that emerged as a result of his character, something that led to the phrase "Can you have sex with a Catholic priest?” being one of the most googled terms of 2019.

“Absolutely f***ing mental,” Scott replied.

The 44-year-old actor also revealed that in the wake of Fleabag airing, his social life improved.

“You get invited to more parties,” he said.

Scott also opened up about his sexuality, and revealed that he was suppressing the fact that he was gay as a teenager.

“Definitely suppressing. I don’t believe people just don’t think about it,” he said before going on to explain how people never asked about his sexuality back then.

"I think what’s really insidious is that people don’t ask you about sex or… People wouldn’t say, ‘Are you gay or are you [straight]?’ And the lack of directness is very damaging. They just didn’t go there.”

When asked if his family knew about his sexuality, he replied: “I don’t think they did know. Or maybe they have a suspicion, but they think, I want to be respectful, so I’m not going to ask about that. 

"Then [when you do come out], people say, ‘Oh, I’m glad.’ You know? If you do talk about it. So I suppose what I feel now is, talking about sex or sexuality is important. Really important.”