Shah Rukh Khan On Being Labelled As A Romantic Hero: "It's My Least Favourite Genre"

Shah Rukh Khan was recently honoured with the prestigious Pardo Alla Carriera Award in recognition of his significant contributions to Indian cinema at this year's Locarno Film Festival. In an interview with Variety, he reflected on his transition to action films in his 50s and opened up about being labelled a romantic hero. He said, "The other day, I was sitting with (director) Aditya Chopra, who kind of started this process with Dilwale Dulhania Le Jayenge. And he said, 'If we count, you've done about five or six romantic films, which are considered classic, sweeping romantic. I think I agree with him, but one gets obviously classified as that."

He added, "I'm not limited to a genre as a viewer. I like to see action films. Strangely, my least favourite is romantic films. I like science-fiction films, dystopian world films, off-beat, human drama films. I love courtroom dramas. I love thrillers. I sometimes like a horror film. I just felt a couple of years when I wasn't working, that I haven't done an out-and-out action film. I like Tom Cruise films. Mission Impossible, you don't really have to worry. You will come back satisfied more often than not."

Shah Rukh Khan made an impressive comeback in 2023. He starred in the blockbuster hit Pathaan alongside Deepika Padukone and John Abraham. Following that, he appeared in Atlee's critically and commercially acclaimed film Jawan with Nayanthara, Sanya Malhotra, Vijay Sethupathi and Deepika Padukone. He concluded the year with Rajkumar Hirani's Dunki, co-starring Taapsee Pannu, Vicky Kaushal and Boman Irani.

Looking ahead, Shah Rukh Khan is reportedly set to appear in a film titled King. In a viral clip of him congratulating Santosh Sivan for receiving the prestigious Pierre Angenieux Excel Lens Award at this year's Cannes Film Festival, fans noticed a script for King placed on the table next to the actor.