Lane publicly announced that he was gay in 1999. Previously, only family and a group of friends and colleagues knew about it. Questions about his sexuality began to arise more frequently as he began taking on roles as gay characters. One of them was Albert from ““Bird Cages” Mike Nichols from 1996.
“I wish I had been braver at that time,” Lane said. “When Oprah Winfrey asked me on her show why I did so well in ‘The Birdcage’… If I could turn back time, I would answer: I’m so good at it because I’m a wonderful actor, but if you ask me if I’m gay , I answer: yes and I am proud of it.
Lane also recalled the help he received from his co-star, who played his character’s life partner in “The Birdcage.” “I confided my fears to the dead, great one Robin Williams, who tenderly told me, ‘Don’t worry, Nathan. If you’re not ready, don’t talk about it.’ And he defended me whenever he could during those awkward moments,” recalled the Emmy winner for his guest appearance on “Crimes next door”.
“The Birdcage” was a remake of the 1978 French comedy “The Cage of the Madmen” by Édouard Molinaro. It’s about a gay couple running a club for non-heteronormative people. When the son of one of them becomes engaged to the daughter of a right-wing senator, his father agrees to pose as a God-fearing conservative. However, he doesn’t know how to tell his partner about it.