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DJ Qualls has come out publicly as gay and says he is tired of worrying what people think of him or how his sexuality could affect his acting career.
The 41-year-old Road Trip, Supernatural and The Man in the High Castle actor made his comments on Twitter on Friday night, just after announcing the news onstage at his friend and former co-star Jim Jeffries‘ standup comedy show at the Balboa Theater in San Diego.
“It is 11:20pm. I just came out on stage at a @jimjefferies show in San Diego,” he tweeted. “Yep, I’m gay. Been gay this whole time. Tired of worrying about what people would think of me. Tired of worrying about what it would do to my career.”
“Well done my friend, very proud of you,” replied French actor Sebastian Roché, who also starred in Supernatural and The Man in the High Castle.
“Proud of you, my friend. Love you, man,” tweeted Supernatural and Veronica Mars alum Adam Rose.
Qualls, a native of Tennessee, starred in Australian-born Jeffries’ FX comedy series Legit between 2013 and 2014, and also made an appearance on Comedy Central’s The Jim Jeffries Show in 2018.
Qualls played a gay character on Amazon’s The Man in the High Castle, which depicts a world in which Nazi Germany won World War II and conquered most of the United States to annex it to the Third Reich.
The star began his onscreen acting career in 1998 but rose to fame as a breakout star of the 2000 cult comedy film Road Trip. He later made appearances on Lost, Monk, Law & Order: Criminal Intent and Breaking Bad. In addition to Legit, Supernatural and The Man in the High Castle, he had recurring and regular roles on My Name Is Earl, Memphis Beat, Perception, Fargo, and Syfy’s Z Nation.
Qualls has never spoken publicly about neither his sexuality nor his love life.
In 2012, he tweeted, “Disagree w/the Pope saying gay marriage is a threat to world peace & gender identity but agree w/the gown he wore while saying it. #Flawless.”
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