Ben Whishaw Opens Up About Coming Out in His 20s and Life as a Gay Actor in the 2000s

Ben Whishaw talks about his experience coming out as gay, the challenges he faced as an actor in the 2000s, and how much happier he feels now being open.

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Ben Whishaw, who you may know as the voice of Paddington Bear or as Q in the James Bond movies, recently shared his story about coming out as gay. 

Ben, now 43 years old, talked about what it was like to keep his sexuality private for a long time, and how much happier he feels now that he is open about it.

Ben came out as gay in 2012 when he entered a civil partnership with composer Mark Bradshaw. Even though they split up in 2022, coming out was a big moment for Ben. 

But it wasn’t always easy. In a new interview with The Sunday Times, Ben talked about the challenges he faced as a young actor in the early 2000s, when being openly gay in Hollywood wasn’t as accepted as it is today.

Ben said that coming out is a personal decision and everyone should do what feels right for them. But for him, it was better to be open about who he is. 

“I’m definitely happier,” he said. “I remember days when I wasn’t out, and that was a more stressful and unhappy position.” Keeping such a big part of himself secret made him feel sad and stressed.

Ben first talked publicly about being gay in 2014 in an interview with The Sunday Times. He shared how difficult it was to tell people close to him about his sexuality. 

He said, “It’s hard to have a conversation with people you’ve known your whole life about something so personal.” These talks were filled with emotion and challenges, especially because of the way the world viewed LGBTQ+ people at the time.

Back in the early 2000s, when Ben’s career was starting to take off, things were very different for LGBTQ+ actors. 

Ben said that if you told someone in the industry you were gay, people would suggest not talking about it too much. Some even told him directly to keep it quiet. “It was almost treated like a disability,” Ben explained.

During that time, there weren’t many openly gay actors, especially young ones. Ben said that being gay in his generation was tricky, especially after the AIDS crisis, which made things even harder for LGBTQ+ people. 

The fear and misunderstanding around the disease added more pressure to keep quiet about being gay.

Now, Ben feels lucky that the world has changed. He said he is grateful that being gay isn’t seen as something shameful anymore. “It doesn’t need to be anyone’s business, but being happy in yourself and not feeling ashamed is much better,” Ben said.

Today, Ben Whishaw is proud to be open about who he is. His story shows that being true to yourself can make life better, even if the journey is tough.