Billy Porter has issued an apology to Harry Styles after criticizing Vogue's decision to feature the former One Direction singer wearing a dress.
Last month, the 52-year-old actor said in an interview with The Sunday Times that he took umbrage with the fact that Styles, 27, was being featured in Vogue while wearing a dress.
Porter, who often walks red carpets in dazzling gowns, told the publication that he was "the first one doing it" - referring to his decision to appear at public events as a man wearing a dress.
"I changed the whole game," the Cinderella star declared. "I. Personally. Changed. The. Whole. Game. And that is not ego, that is just fact. I was the first one doing it and now everybody is doing it."
"I created the conversation and yet Vogue still put Harry Styles, a straight white man, in a dress on their cover for the first time," Porter added.
The musical star pointed out that he was not "dragging" the former One Direction singer, but rather Vogue, adding: "[Styles] is the one you're going to try and use to represent this new conversation?
"This is politics for me," Porter added. "This is my life. I had to fight my entire life to get to the place where I could wear a dress to the Oscars and not be gunned now."
"All [Styles] has to do is be white and straight."
Now, during an appearance on The Late Show with Stephen Colbert on Thursday, Porter apologized to the musician for mentioning his name in his comments.
"Harry Styles, I apologize to you for having your name in my mouth. It’s not about you. The conversation is not about you," Porter said.
Back in December, Styles became the first man to land a solo cover of Vogue - and did so while wearing a dress.
Speaking to Vogue last year about his desire to wear dresses, Styles said: "Clothes are there to have fun with and experiment with and play with. What's really exciting is that all of these lines are just kind of crumbling away."
The 'Watermelon Sugar' singer went on: "When you take away 'There's clothes for men and there's clothes for women,' once you remove any barriers, obviously you open up the arena in which you can play."
Featured image credit: UPI / Alamy Stock
