Wentworth Miller became an iconic figure within the LGBT community earlier this year when he published a letter to officials at the St Petersburg Film Festival; turning down their invitation to attend the event as well as publicly outing himself at the same time. As comfortable as he now seems, things weren't always like this for Wentworth, as the actor has revealed over the weekend.

Wentworth Miller
Miller has been commended for his response to the crisis in Russia

 

Speaking at the Human Rights Campaign Dinner in Seattle on Saturday, 8 September night (TMZ first reported), the Prison Break star revealed that he had struggled to come to terms with his sexuality in his younger years and this struggle cause him deep psychological trauma. He admitted to first trying to take his own life at the age of 15 and went on to discuss the everyday struggle that he went through by being a closeted actor working in Hollywood.

"The first time i tried to kill myself I was 15," he told the audience at the campaign dinner, "I waited until my family were away for the weekend and I was alone in the house and I swallowed a bottle of pills."


He added that his attempt to take his own life wasn't a cry for help, because he didn't "believe there was help to cry for."

In reference to his letter to the Russian film festival that he so famously turned down, he said, "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."

Wentworth is the latest star to come out in protest of the Russian government since the controversial bill, the Duma, was passed into law in the former Soviet federation. The new law imposes heavy fines on those providing information about homosexuality to people under 18 and limits the rights homosexuals have in the country, as it essentially bans any form of gay pride rallies from taking place.

Wentworth Miller FOX
The actor struggled with his identity in his younger years