Samira Wiley has revealed she was reduced to tears after being publicly outed by one of her ‘Orange Is The New Black’ co-stars.
For four years, Samira starred as Poussey in the Netflix prison drama, a character whose death served as one of the biggest shocks in the show’s six-series run.
But playing a popular character also meant there was an increase of interest in her private life, as she discovered when one undisclosed ‘OINTB’ cast member had discussed her sexuality in an interview.
Reflecting on her reaction to being outed without her consent, Samira told the podcast ‘Nancy’: “I wasn’t out at all [during season one of ‘OINTB’]. Someone from my cast, actually, they were doing an interview when they were talking about out gay actors in the cast and they mentioned my name and I saw it in print and I cried, I cried a lot.
“And I, like, tried to get it taken down and, look, I had a journey, you guys, it was not all always super open-hearted and like I’m a gay, gaymo.”
She went on to say that playing an LGBT+ character made her eventually want to speak more openly about her own sexuality, noting: “Falling in love with Poussey, which is a real thing that happened to me, helped me fall in love with myself.
“Everyone’s journey is their own, you should be able to come out on your own terms.”
Since leaving ‘Orange Is The New Black’, Samira landed a key role in another popular drama, ‘The Handmaid’s Tale’, playing lead character June’s best friend, Moira.
Last year, Samira married ‘Orange Is The New Black’ writer Lauren Morelli, who she met while she was still on the show.