Actor Paul Bettany has opened up about his father who ended up coming out late in life and then went back into the closet before his death.
“I had a gay father who died a couple of years ago,” the Beautiful Mind star revealed to Total Film magazine. “He came out of the closet at 63. He then had a 20-year relationship with a man called Andy Clark. It was a joyous relief for everybody, actually.”
“Once his partner died, [in the 80’s] he [my dad] was in his 80’s at that point, my dad decided to go back inside the closet and say that it had all been a big misunderstanding because he was a Catholic and concerned about getting past Peter through the pearly gates,” he continued.
“The shame he felt for his sexual identity was devastating. He was unable to mourn the person who I think was the love of his life.”
Thane, an actor, dancer & teacher, was with Andy for two decades following his divorce from Paul’s mother Anne. His career in show business began in the 1950’s and continued over the years where he made appearances on shows like Doctor Who and The Talisman.
There have been several celebrities who came out at a later part of their life. Sex and the City star Cynthia Nixon married now wife Christine Marinoni in 2009 after being in a 15-year relationship with ex Danny Mozes. “I don’t really feel I’ve changed,” she said in a 2007 interview. “I’d been with men all my life, and I’d never fallen in love with a woman. But when I did, it didn’t seem so strange. I’m just a woman in love with another woman.” The Emmy-winner later identified as bisexual in 2012.Â
Others who publicly addressed their sexuality years into them being famous include singer Ricky Martin, talk show host Ellen DeGeneres, actor Victor Garber and rapper Da Brat.Â