If you check out Merchant of Venice, which opens in movie houses this week nationwide, you may notice a juicy detail absent from the Shakespeare play your were forced to read in 8th grade English class. Antonio, the titular merchant (played by the debonair Jeremy Irons), receives a surprise smooch of thanks from his swooning young benefactor, Bassanio (played by the dashing Joseph Fiennes). But don’t assume it’s an Alexander-esque revelation that these Elizabethan literary semi-icons were gay or bisexual. Irons set things straight, as it were, in a recent interview: “To them, male love was regarded as the highest form of love, but it was quite platonic. It was traditional for an older man to patronize a younger man, to give him a start in life.”

Who else would play a notorious wife-poisoner (Reversal of Fortune), a charming pedophile (Lolita), an 18th Century Spanish Jesuit priest (The Mission), deranged twins (Dead Ringers), an opera buff smitten with a transvestite (M Butterfly), or a British Army Officer prone to flashbacks (Brideshead Revisited). And that’s just a sampling of the 56 roles Irons has inhabited over three decades.

These days, the 54-year old British-born actor is working overtime—aside from Merchant, he recently shot Cassanova, Mathilde, and Kingdom of Heaven. And Being Julia enjoyed a healthy run this past fall (his co-star, Annette Bening, nabbed a Golden Globe nod).

And yes, Irons recently won raves for his nuanced portrayal of Larry Kelly in Callas Forever, as the opera diva’s friend and manager who is unabashedly gay.

This tender homage of a film describes an imaginary chapter near the end of Maria Callas’ life, sprung wholly from the heart of illustrious filmmaker Franco Zeffirelli, who was a dear friend of the opera superstar.

The plot is simple enough. The year is 1977 and a moribund Callas (Fanny Ardant, who also played the diva onstage in Master Class), in mourning for her voice, has put herself out to pasture, sequestered in her musty Paris apartment, to pop pills and watch old tapes of her past operatic feats. Very Norma Desmond.

The devilishly smarmy Kelly, a bit long in the tooth as well (and long in the ponytail), convinces the recluse to claim her past glory by restaging her best operas on video, and dubbing over her now-derelict voice with recordings from when she was in her prime. A triumphant comeback, to be sure.

And yet, Callas grapples with the Faustian ramifications of the deal—is it honest?

There’s also a subplot about Kelly’s budding romance with a young artist cutie, Michael (Jay Rodan), who happens to be hearing-impaired yet magnificently captures the sound, and soul, of Callas’ music on canvas.

Recently, we spoke to Irons about Callas Forever, his sizzling career, and his courageous choices.

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