One actor hid pictures of his husband on Instagram before auditioning for a big drama series.

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Andrew added, "Mercifully, these days people don't see being gay as a character flaw. But nor is it a virtue, like kindness. Or a talent, like playing the banjo. It's just a fact. Of course, it's part of my make-up, but I don't want to trade on it. I am a private person; I think that's important if you're an actor. But there's a difference between privacy and secrecy, and I'm not a secretive person. Really I just want to get on with my job, which is to pretend to be lots of different people. Simple as that."

Elliot also came out as trans in 2020. On Twitter, he wrote, "I love that I am trans. And I love that I am queer. And the more that I hold myself and fully embrace who I am, the more I dream, the more my heart grows and the more I thrive."

She said, "Thinking back, I felt very strongly that he kissed me like that to protect me. Nobody knew, but they said kissing could be one of the ways that you could catch it, possibly. And the thing that was so hard, so hard, was the press was so brutal with him after that. And they didn't realize what he was going through."

After his death, the donations to AIDS research reportedly doubled from the previous year. He also willed $250K to support the research.

Additionally, a month before the actor died, President Reagan — who was friends with him but had refused to help him get treatment at a military hospital — spoke about AIDS publicly for the first time. Finally, in the days following Rock's death, Congress designated $221 million toward the search for a cure.

He added, "It's not just straight people who are the gatekeepers — the call often comes from inside the house. I'm eternally grateful to the handful of gay men who created opportunities for me: Jeff Davis, Greg Berlanti, and Ryan Murphy. They were the exception, not the rule."

"When I was closeted, I beat out straight guys to play straight roles, and I played them well. Now, the only auditions I get are for gay characters, which remain sparse. Is that because I'm not very good? Maybe. But that didn't stop me from booking roles before. It’s no different for the young gay actors I see coming up today, trying to make it in a system that isn't built for them.

To be a gay actor in Hollywood, even in 2021, is to be inundated with mixed messages: Consumers are mostly straight, so don't alienate them. But lots of the decision-makers are gay, so play that game! Now that I'm older and sober, I'm trying to square who I am with the inauthentic version of myself I invested in for years. I often wonder how different things would've been if I were allowed to be who I was when I moved to town: a hopeful kid confident in his sexuality," he said.

He continued, "Apparently the pre requisite to being a gay public figure is to appear on the cover of a magazine with the caption 'I am gay'. I apologize for not doing so if this is what was expected! My belief is that you live your life by example, and not by a caption on a magazine! If there ever has been any confusion about my sexuality, then you are someone that doesn't even know me!

I love living my life being open and honest, but at this time I choose not to discuss my private life any further! My fellow band members don't discuss their private lives with their loved ones and I don't feel that just because I am gay, I should have to discuss mine!"

Previously, author Jackie Collins told Gaydar Radio, "Matt Bomer, who is the most gorgeous looking guy and the star of White Collar, he had not come out of the closet, but people in the know knew he was gay. His audition tape went in, and he called up the agent, and somebody didn't like him and told [the producers] he was gay. They said, 'No, no, we can't cast you.' The reason he didn't get cast was because he was gay."

At the time, a source alleged to E!, "Matt was Brett [Ratner]'s Superman. He would never have not cast Matt because he's gay. Brett knew Matt was gay. They're good friends. Matt not being Superman had nothing to do with his sexuality. It was because the director changed."

Warner Bros. didn't respond to BuzzFeed's request for comment.

He came out by thanking Simon. and their children in a speech at the Steve Chase Humanitarian Awards. He said, "I'd really especially like to thank my beautiful family: Simon, Kit, Walker, Henry. Thank you for teaching me what unconditional love is. You will always be my proudest accomplishment." 

In 2020, told Attitude, "There are definitely more opportunities for gay actors than ever before — but there's still a price to pay for being out. We're living in a day and age where there are actors and athletes and public figures who are openly gay and have been unafraid to acknowledge that. But without a question, there's a tradeoff, in my experience. I came out at a time when it was very risky to do so — I had a studio film that was about to premiere, and a television series coming out. But to me, it was more important to be my most authentic self, both for my family and for myself. I wasn't trying to be a role model, nor am I now, but I thought if it could help just one person, then it would be worth it. But to say that didn't cost me certain things in my career would be a lie. It did. To me, that trade-off was worth it. But it hasn't been some fairy tale — no pun intended."