Heroes Actor Thomas Dekker Comes Out as Gay After Being Outed by Bryan Fuller

Thomas Dekker, an actor known for his work on The Sarah Connor Chronicles, The Secret Circle, and for his role as Hayden Panettiere’s high-school friend Zach in Heroes, has come out as gay and revealed that he is married to a man. Dekker did so after Hannibal and American Gods creator Bryan Fuller, who wrote on Heroes, obliquely discussed his sexuality at an Outfest Los Angeles panel earlier this week. In his speech, Fuller discussed “het-washing,” when a character meant to be gay is turned straight during the production of a TV series. Fuller alluded to a cast member on the first season of Heroes whose management threatened to pull him from the show if the character was revealed to be gay. “The character became straight, and the actor came out as gay,” Fuller said.

“My sexual orientation once again came into question this week when a prominent gay man used an awards acceptance speech to ‘out’ me,” Dekker wrote in his coming out letter posted on Instagram last night. “While he did not mention me by name, the explicit details of his reference made it easy for the public and media to connect the dots. While it is an odd situation, I thank him because it presents a prime opportunity for me to publicly say that I am indeed a man who proudly loves other men. In fact, this April, I married my husband and I could not be happier.”

Given a little detective work, it was fairly easy to identify the actor mentioned in Fuller’s speech as Dekker, as those involved in the show had previously discussed backstage drama related to discussions over Zach’s sexuality. Dekker himself addressed the issue in a 2007 blog post, claiming that his issue was not with playing a gay character, but that making a character who “had a burning love” for Panettiere’s Claire gay would go against the interpretation he was providing. See Dekker’s full note below.

My sexual orientation once again came into question this week when a prominent gay man used an awards acceptance speech to "out" me. While he did not mention me by name, the explicit details of his reference made it easy for the public and media to connect the dots. While it is an odd situation, I thank him because it presents a prime opportunity for me to publicly say that I am indeed a man who proudly loves other men. In fact, this April, I married my husband and I could not be happier. I have never lied to the press about the fluidity of my sexuality but this man claiming that I came out is not true. Because I have not "officially" until this moment. I simply refuse to be robbed of the glorious joy that belongs to me. To say the words myself. "I'm gay". Those words are a badge of honor that no one can steal. Sexuality and who you love is a deeply personal and complicated thing. For some of us, it takes time to cultivate, discover and conclude. It is not something anyone should ever be ashamed of and certainly not something anyone should be rushed into. I agree with many who believe it is an important responsibility for LGBTQ persons with a platform to come out. It has the power to change minds, challenge beliefs and make others feel understood and supported. It can strengthen the progression of our community and help disarm those who discriminate against us. It is a brave, powerful and important thing to do but it is also a deeply personal decision. One that should only be made when you are ready. If we are to stand strong in the gay community, our mission should be support, not exclusion; love, not shame. I choose not to look back on the past with a regretful heart but rather focus on the future with a hopeful one. A future where myself and all others can feel free to express their true selves with honor and dignity. I embrace you, any of you, with open arms, kindness, faith and patience. For all of you who have supported me, before and now, I thank you from the bottom of my fledgling heart. Be proud of who you are. No matter how long it takes.

A post shared by Thomas Dekker (@thomas.dekker) on Jul 13, 2017 at 6:10pm PDT

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