Sean Hayes reveals his mother told him to ‘see a therapist’ after coming out as gay

Actor Sean Hayes has revealed his mother didn’t react as well as he had hoped when he came out as gay. 

The Will & Grace star opened up about his coming out experience in a new interview with People magazine, reavling that his mim told him to seek therapy. 

Hayes told the magazine he came out during Thanksgiving weekend in 1988 when he was 18-years-old. 

“My mum said I needed to go see a therapist. She wrote me a 10-page letter, both sides on legal pad size paper. ‘This is not what God…’ You know, the whole uneducated view of it.”

However, Hayes also explained that his mother thankfully grew to accept his sexuality with time. 

“She became educated and had friends who [were] gay people. She was like, ‘Oh I see. You’re just like me,’ and all that.

“It became fine and wonderful, and then she became so supportive and awesome,” he added. 

The actor and producer went on to talk about how he hid his roles in school plays from family members when he was younger. 

“I kept it hidden, the fact that I was in high school plays, from my brothers and my family because this is 1986, being gay then was different,” he explained. 

“I kind of knew I was, but not quite yet. I associated, like society taught me, that theatre was for gays, and it was for sissies, and things like that. Things that you were taught to be ashamed of.” 

Despite coming out to his mother, Hayes didn’t come out publicly until 2010, four years before he married composer, Scott Icenogle.