Wentworth Miller (Tammie Arroyo/AFF/EMPICS Entertainment)

PRISON BREAK STAR Wentworth Miller has come out as gay, and rejected an invitation to a Russian film festival over the country’s treatment of same-sex relationships.

The actor said he would like to attend the festival, but could not “in good conscience” accept.

Saying that he is “deeply troubled by the treatment of gay men and women” by authorities in Russia, Miller wrote:

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. Perhaps, when and if circumstances improve, I’ll be free to make a different choice.

Here’s the letter in full, as published on the website of equality organisation GLAAD. To read it in full resolution, click here.

GLAAD.org

There have been protests around the world, including in Dublin, over a new law in Russia outlawing what it calls “homosexual propaganda”. The legislation criminalises the dissemination of information about homosexuality to minors.

GLAAD spokesperson Wilson Cruz said Miller’s public show of support “sends a powerful message to LGBT Russians, who are facing extreme violence and persecution: you are not alone.”

He added:

As people from across the globe continue to speak out against Russia’s horrific law, more celebrities and corporations should follow his courageous lead in openly condemning Russia’s anti-LGBT law.

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