Luke Evans felt "free" in London as a gay man.

The 44-year-old actor left his hometown at 16, moving to Cardiff, then London to study acting, and Luke admits that he relished the anonymity that comes with living in a big city.

Speaking to The Independent, Luke shared: "You could almost disappear.

"That’s the reason London appealed to me when I was a young man. You want to find your community, and often where [gay people] are brought up, there isn’t one, or there’s shame, or there’s secrets.

"To feel free, and to feel part of something, you go to a big city where you’ll find people like you. It’s what gay people have done for decades and will keep on doing. Though I do hope that these smaller villages and cities are a bit more accepting now."

Luke has played a wide range of roles during the course of his career.

The movie star ultimately feels fortunate that he hasn't been pigeonholed or typecast as an actor.

Luke - whose film credits include 'Beauty and the Beast' and 'The Girl on the Train' - said: "Even in my late twenties, I looked like a 35-year-old man.

"And at the point of my career starting in movies, 'Twilight' had just started, remember? It was all about looking perfect and pretty and flawless, and I was none of those things - I looked like a bloke. I could look scary. I could be kind. I could be a leading man. I could do action. All these different things.

"So I fit into quite a large casting category, and people were able to see the spectrum of ability that I have."