Prison Break’s Wentworth Miller Officially Comes Out In Protest At Russia’s Anti-Gay Laws

For years there has been speculation around the sexuality of Prison Break star Wentworth Miller. Now he’s decided to put those rumours to rest by coming out as gay and doing so as part of a statement about Russia’s anti-gay laws.

The actor, who recently turned screenwriter with the movie Stoker, had been invited to the St. Petersburg International Film Festival, however he felt the need to decline the invitation, sending a letter to the organisers telling them why.

It reads: 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.

However, as a gay man, I must decline.

I am deeply troubled by the current attitude toward and treatment of gay men and women by the Russian government. The situation is in no way acceptable, and I cannot in good conscience participate in a celebratory occasion hosted by a country where people like myself are being systematically denied their basic right to live and love openly.

Perhaps, when and if circumstances improve, I’ll be free to make a different choice.

St. Petersburg is the perhaps the centre of the increasingly homophobic laws in Russia, as it was one of the first cities to clamp down on so-called ‘gay propaganda’, which has since been taken up and copied in national laws.

GLAAD spokesman Wilson Cruz noted in a statement, “Wentworth’s bold show of support sends a powerful message to LGBT Russians, who are facing extreme violence and persecution: you are not alone. As people from across the globe continue to speak out against Russia’s horrific law, more celebrities and corporations should follow his courageous lead in openly condemning Russia’s anti-LGBT law.”

Miller’s sexuality has been an open secret in Hollywood for several years and he has been active with several pro-gay organisations, although he has generally side-stepped the question in interviews (and back in 2006 issued flat-out denials) – until now, that is. He will next be seen in the film The Loft, and also has several scripts in development, including one based on Vlad The Impaler, who was immortalised as Bram Stoker’s Dracula. Let’s hope we see much more of him soon.