Matt Bomer Is ‘Really Proud’ Of Wentworth Miller For Coming Out As Gay
Matt Bomer (White Collar, Magic Mike) joins the chorus of supporters of Wentworth Miller for coming out as a gay man publicly.
Bomer, who himself came out in 2012, added his support to the growing celebrity list welcoming the Prison Break star surprise announcement.
Matt toldE! News at the New York Heineken U.S. Open, that Miller’s move was incredibly classy.
“Wow, I think its really bold and incredibly classy how he came out and did it. I am really proud of him. Its very reflective of his amazing character.”
Even in this day and age, there is a stigma associated with being gay in Hollywood and many believe that non-straight actors are not passed over for leading-men material.
In a 2010 interview, out gay actor Richard Chamberlain said he wouldn’t advice closeted gays to come out in Hollywood.
“There’s still a tremendous amount of homophobia in our culture,” Chamberlain said at the time. “For an actor to be working is a kind of miracle… so it’s just silly for a working actor to say, ‘Oh, I don’t care if anybody knows I’m gay’ — especially if you’re a leading man.”
Matt Bomer and others supporting Wentworth Miller is a great thing for gays who are afraid to come out at the risk of damaging their careers.
But are major studios ready to embrace openly gays and lesbians and give them leading men or ladies roles based on their talents and not their sexual orientation?
The jury remains stalled on this topic. It is not clear whether Hollywood as a whole is ready to embrace gay actors with all that entails.
Wentworth’s announcement came as he protested Russia’s new laws, which don’t allow public discussion of gay rights.
The actor had received an invitation to attend the St. Petersburg International Film Festival, but declined.
“Thank you for your kind invitation. As someone who has enjoyed visiting Russia in the past and can also claim a degree of Russian ancestry, it would make me happy to say yes,” Miller, 41, says in a letter to Maria Averbakh, director of the Festival. “However, as a gay man, I must decline.”
This gained Wentworth Miller the respect of not only Matt Bomer, but many others, gay and straight alike.
