Out actor Denis O'Hare on Saturday
talked about coming out and the high cost of being closeted.
O'Hare, who came out gay in high
school, was honored over the weekend with the Human Rights Campaign's
(HRC) Visibility Award at its 35th annual New England Gala
Dinner + Auction.
“I've had to come out so many times
in my life,” O'Hare, 54, said in accepting his award. “ I
repeatedly have to come out as gay. Recently I had to come out as a
Hillary Clinton supporter. I've had to come out as an atheist. I've
had to come out as a sober person. And these are all parts of me.”
“I wasn't sure I wanted to do it. It
scared me.”
“And this coming out is fraught. And
it's risky. And it's costly. But the price of being inauthentic is
much higher. The pain of living a lie is much, much worse,” O'Hare
added.
O'Hare is best known for playing
vampire Russell Edgington on HBO's True Blood and his
performances in the plays Take Me Out and Sweet Charity.
He's also received critical acclaim for his roles in the FX series
American Horror Story.
O'Hare married Hugo Redwood in 2011.
Together they are raising their adopted son, Declan.