August 11, 2016 | Celeb Watch

Colton Haynes feels responsible for father's suicide

In the September issue of OUT, actor and model Colton Haynes discusses coming out early in life. And although things have gotten better, his initial experiences were difficult (to say the least).

He always fancied boys, and took the bold step of coming out at 14. He admitted it was not something one did in a small town like Andale, Kansas. His brother would wait for him after classes in order to protect him from bullies.

His parents struggled with news they had a gay son. He rebelled, losing his virginity that same year; he also experimented with drugs and lived for some time in a friend's closet.

While staying with his friend, he was told that his father had taken a handful of pills and killed himself.

 “I’m the last person in the world who would say, ‘Oh, my dad—pity me,’” Haynes said. “But I was told that my dad killed himself because he found out I was gay. So, of course, I lost it and was like, ‘How could you say something like that?’ And no one will ever really know the truth. But my brother and my mom went to pick up my dad’s stuff, and the only picture on his fridge was my eighth-grade graduation picture. So I was just like, Fuck.” 

Though open about his sexuality in his personal life, he did not come out publicly last year. He was called out by Real O'Neal's star Noah Galvin for not coming out sooner and more boldly. (Galvin, or his publicist, later released an apology.)

You can read more of Haynes' interview with OUT here.