Actors playing gay

I'm glad that Heath Ledger and Jake Gyllenhaal are being lauded for their bravery in appearing in Brokeback Mountain because I think they are brave and they deserve the kudos. However, it's odd how many critics and writers (not to mention the general public) completely ignore the many high profile actors who have appeared in gay-themed movies without any noticeable impact on their stardom. Case in point is Leonardo DiCaprio who played gay poet Rimbaud in the movie Total Eclipse long before he shot to prominence in Titantic. Russell Crowe, who is now viewed as some kind of he-man prototype, played a gay man in a terrific Australian film, The Sum of Us (based on a great play). While Guy Pearse is somewhat off the radar now, he was quite idolized for a time, when he starred in Memento and The Time Machine. Long before these star vehicles, he played a very gay character in Pricilla, Queen of the Desert. And how about Mr. Romantic Comedy himself, Hugh Grant, who appeared in the movie An Awfully Big Adventure as a cold, gay theater producer. Granted no one saw any of the movies I mentioned, and they were all produced outside America, but it still annoys me when I hear the argument about how playing gay kills your career and no one will do it, because it's just not true.