Billy Eichner to play Paul Lynde in a biopic of the groundbreaking TV and LGBTQ icon's life

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Eichner is set to star in and produce Man in the Box, inspired by the life of Lynde, the star of Bewitched and Hollywood Squares. "While Lynde was never publicly 'out,' he never lied about his sexuality either, as most famous gay actors of that era did," says Mike Fleming Jr. "His unique comic persona often and overtly nodded to his 'barely-closeted' lifestyle in a way that still feels groundbreaking for his time. But he was not on the same lists for roles as straight actors. One of the reasons Eichner wants to see the film made is because of the chance to illustrate how little things have changed." Eichner says of playing Lynde: "There’s some overlap, between Paul and I, in that we both had our breakthrough in the industry, as performers, presenting a rather larger-than-life, flamboyant, gay persona on screen. Even though I was always very out, Paul was never technically out. But he was as out as you could be, at that time, in that he was clearly leaning into a flamboyant persona...I think that was very admirable, for the time, and also, if you look at those jokes on Hollywood Squares, he comes as close to admitting he’s gay as you possibly can. He’s making thinly veiled, at best, references to gay sex, to finding men attractive, to swinging both ways. It’s not even subtle, and rather bold for the time. That wasn’t some underground, indie film being shot in New York; it was as mainstream as you can get. Hollywood Squares was a huge hit, always in the top 10 or  20 shows, for over a decade. It made him a very famous, wealthy person."