Long before Star Wars turned Sir Alec Guinness into a global icon for a new generation of movie fans, the legendary British actor privately urged Ian McKellen to step away from public LGBTQ+ activism. McKellen recently recalled that Guinness once asked him to reconsider his involvement with the U.K. advocacy organization Stonewall, arguing that actors should avoid political causes altogether. Speaking to The Guardian , McKellen said Guinness invited him to lunch in London’s Pimlico neighborhood before raising concerns about the actor’s growing visibility as a gay rights advocate. At the time, McKellen was helping establish Stonewall, the influential lobbying group created to push for equal legal protections for LGBTQ+ people in the United Kingdom. “He thought it somewhat unseemly for an actor to dabble in public or political affairs and advised me, sort of pleaded with me, to withdraw,” McKellen said of Guinness.…