Phillip Schofield claimed the reaction to his romance with the age gap was “homophobic” — because Leonardo DiCaprio’s relationships with the age gap were accepted.
The former This Morning presenter, 61, sat down with Amol Rajan to discuss the revelation he had entered into an extramarital relationship with a “much younger” colleague on the ITV magazine show and his subsequent split .
During the chat, he claimed homophobia played a role in the negative reaction to the relationship – after he was accused of grooming his former love.
The homophobia allegations divided social media users, some of whom supported his theory while others insisted he was acting “narcissistically” towards the claims.
Phillip insisted there would be a lot more acceptance if the relationship had been straight, even citing Titanic star Leonardo, who is known for his penchant for dating significantly younger women.
Shocking: Phillip Schofield claimed the reaction to his age gap romance was ‘homophobic’ — because Leonardo DiCaprio’s age gap relationships were accepted
Hm! Phillip insisted there would be a lot more acceptance if the relationship had been straight, even citing Titanic star Leonardo, who is known for his penchant for dating significantly younger women
He said, “Attraction is attraction.” “In the gay world, it’s no different than in the straight world or in the lesbian world.”
The presenter went on to tell The Sun: “There shouldn’t be a difference, that’s where homophobia comes in. We first met when he was 15…”
“I went to drama school (that he went to), so yeah, there’s a difference, it’s accepted by Leonardo DiCaprio, but it’s not accepted when it’s in the gay world.”
Leonardo’s romance with a host of younger women has been questioned on a number of occasions – and often criticized, but this seems to have been overlooked by Phillip, or at least not addressed.
Earlier this year, Leonardo, 48, was photographed becoming friends with 19-year-old model Eden Polani – prompting backlash and critics claiming his alleged love interest was being somehow taken advantage of.
The Titanic actor is known for dating women under 25 – but the 29-year age difference between Leo and the Paris-born Polani has drawn criticism
on the internet, and even TV star Megyn Kelly had his say.
Scores of viewers of the interview shared his thoughts on homophobia, writing on the website, “Yes, I think homophobia played a part in the response to Schofield’s affair, along with all the other complex power relations…”
“There’s a tinge of homophobia about this Phillip Schofield thing.” Despite the lies and ruins of his career, I don’t fear for his financial future as much as he seems to…
“It’s really depressing to hear the Phillip Schofield interview.” I’m not a fan of his and I don’t doubt that he should have done things differently…
“But neither do I doubt the homophobia that gave rocket engines to this story… Considering that Phillip Schofield and his ex-boyfriend Matthew were both adults when a romantic relationship began…
“One has to wonder if all of this hate in the media is based on homophobia.” “Like presenters who only pay lip service to LGBTQ rights, they felt that this gave them the green light to hate.”
Shocking: The presenter went on to tell The Sun: “There shouldn’t be a difference, that’s where homophobia comes in. We first met when he was 15.”
Some fans disagreed with claims that homophobia played a role in the reaction, with a number of irate Twitter users writing: “Phillip Schofield says his career was over after the affair…”
“Blaming it on homophobia won’t do you any favors bro!!! That’s because you’re a lying, arrogant CHEATER!!!… Phillip Schofield says his career ended after an affair. Schofield “If it was male-female it wouldn’t be such a scandal”
Phillip also highlighted the name of Caroline Flack after the presenter died by suicide in February 2020 due to her legal troubles over an argument with boyfriend Lewis Burton.
His discussion of the late star drew criticism from some, with the user writing, “I’m the real victim!” A very narcissistic move…
Breaking his silence: Schofield described himself as a “broken” man and denied allegations he promoted the young man, who landed a job at This Morning after meeting the former host
“Meanwhile, the actual victim is being silenced after trying to speak up three years ago.” Keep Caroline Flack’s name out of your mouth, Phillip! #phillipschofield #schofield #itvmafia #itv’.
Phillip failed to apologize to his wife Stephanie Lowe for his affair with a This Morning colleague in a slammed BBC interview.
After publicly admitting he was having an affair in an explosive statement, the 61-year-old presenter broke his silence, insisting his “biggest apology” was for the aftermath to his former lover, adding that he ” feels sorry for everyone he lied to.”
In the interview, which was published Friday morning, Phillip admitted his relationship with Stephanie is “not exactly the best at the moment” but they have “a wonderful marriage”.
The former ITV star defiantly displayed his wedding ring and hinted they could prepare their relationship for the future, after The Chron revealed that Stephanie was both angry and devastated when he admitted he was having an affair had.
Shocking: After publicly admitting to having an affair, the 61-year-old presenter broke his silence and insisted his “biggest apology” was for the fallout to his former lover
Phillip told the BBC’s Amol Rajan: “I’ve had a wonderful marriage, have a wonderful marriage.” [waves his wedding ring]although it’s not great right now with an incredibly supportive wife and two wonderful kids.
Host Amol noted that they are currently “separated,” with Phillip adding, “We’re separated but we’re very much together.”
When asked what he would like to say to Stephanie, Phillip replied, “Oh my god, can you imagine how difficult that conversation was?” before pausing and saying, “Let’s just say it was an incredibly difficult conversation.”
“The most difficult conversation I’ve ever had to have with her and she’s extremely disappointed because I lied to her too.” But she wished me well today and we’ll see.”
Speaking up: Phillip told Amol that his “biggest apology” for the aftermath of the affair was to his former lover
When asked what he would say to his two daughters, Phillip said, “My daughters were, I called them and said, ‘I have something to tell you,’ and they came up to me, and they were amazing.”
“I looked at them and I was like, ‘Well, you got that right, and they don’t think you’re a bully, and they don’t think you’re toxic, and they know you screwed up, royal.”
Phillip told Amol that his “biggest apology” for the aftermath of the affair was to his former lover.
He said, ‘It brought the greatest misery to his totally innocent life, his totally innocent family, his totally innocent friends.’ It caused them the greatest sorrow.’
He added, “I am deeply sorry and I apologize to him because I should have known better.” I should have acted the way I’ve always acted. I should not have done it. I’m sorry. And I’ll be sorry forever. I’m sorry I’m going to die. I am deeply ashamed.’
Exciting: Phillip said: “She’s extremely disappointed because I lied to her too,” while hinting he still wants to repair their marital relationship