EXCLUSIVE: Grey's Anatomy star T.R. Knight Confirms He's Gay

Contents:

• JAKE BORELLI ON WHY GREY'S ANATOMY'S GAY BLOOD BAN STORY IS PERSONAL
• MEET ALEX LANDI, THE ACTOR PLAYG GREY'S ANATOMY'S FIRST GAY MALE SURGEON
• 'GREY'S ANATOMY' ACTOR OUT AS GAY
• 'GREY'S ANATOMY' ACTOR JAKE BORELLI'S CHARACTER ME OUT AS GAY. THEN HE DID TOO.
• EXCLUSIVE: 'GREY'S ANATOMY' STAR T.R. KNIGHT CONFIRMS HE'S GAY
• 'GREY'S ANATOMY' SEASON 16: FANS LOVE HOW GAY UPLE NI AND SCHMT SUPPORT EACH OTHER AND WANT TO SEE MORE OF THEM
• 'GREY'S ANATOMY' CASTS ALEX LANDI AS SHOW'S FIRST GAY MALE SURGEON
• GREY'S ANATOMY CHARACTER LAMENTS YEARS 'WASTED' TO GAY SHAME

JAKE BORELLI ON WHY GREY'S ANATOMY'S GAY BLOOD BAN STORY IS PERSONAL

It's rare to see a gay relatnship between men shown on a televisn show of Grey's liber, and the normalcy and emotns showg the two's love for one another are rehg. Callie Torr' father to Seattle Grace wh the pastor of their church and a plan to nvce his dghter she isn't gay this emotnal episo that shows a real look at how people of the LGBTQ+ muny n be treated by their own loved on. After she shouts at her father that he n't "pray away the gay, " Callie tells Arizona she don't need a fay who's not gog to accept her for who she is.

" Kyle explas to Callie how all he wanted was to make the day feel special, as the state of Washgton didn't regnize gay marriage as a real marriage.

Gay marriage fally beme legal jt 10 years ago Washgton, 2012, one year after this episo aired.

MEET ALEX LANDI, THE ACTOR PLAYG GREY'S ANATOMY'S FIRST GAY MALE SURGEON

The beloved character, who me out as gay at the same time Jake Borelli, who portrays him, me out publicly, worked amid the trma of early COVID-19 last season, and suffered full-on burnout after losg his first patient unr the hospal's new trag method this season. But for Borelli, a gay blood ban story that volv Levi Grey's Anatomy's 18th season fale (also the show's whoppg 400th episo), is eply personal.

'GREY'S ANATOMY' ACTOR OUT AS GAY

"In preparg for the episo and talkg to people about this, I found that pecially om the straight muny, that there's this ia that oh, well, the blood ban is now no longer a lifetime blood ban for gay men, " he adds. "You're fe as long as you don't have sex, as long as you don't partake sodomy, or if you don't get married, " Borelli says of ndnal acceptance of gay and bi men.

'GREY'S ANATOMY' ACTOR JAKE BORELLI'S CHARACTER ME OUT AS GAY. THEN HE DID TOO.

"Borelli, 31, joed ABC's long-nng medil drama 2018, g out publicly as his character's gay storyle unfold not long after. I uldn't bee I knew that I was gay, " Borelli says. Here, the actor and those who know him reveal the story of the man behd Grey's Anatomy's first openly gay male surgeon.

Jake Borelli, the actor who plays him, did, Thursday, after the long-nng medil drama troduced s first-ever gay romance and male-on-male kiss between Schmt and new character Ni Kim (Alex Landi), Borelli celebrated the landmark moment on Instagram.

“As a gay guy myself, tonight’s episo was so special to me, " the 27-year-old wrote. "This is exactly the kd of story I craved as a young gay kid growg up Oh, and blows my md that I’m able to brg life to Dr. Shownner Krista Vernoff told Entertament Weekly that she was spired to wre the gay romance for Borelli's character bee Schmt remd her of a iend llege "who was sort of a clumsy, fumferg type who would trip over his own feet and would stutter, and then he me out toward the end of our hman year and emerged as a pletely different human beg bee he was livg his tth.

EXCLUSIVE: 'GREY'S ANATOMY' STAR T.R. KNIGHT CONFIRMS HE'S GAY

And when I was growg up, that led me to not knowg that I was gay for a long time. Not havg the language or unrstandg that I was gay. Actor Jake Borelli remembers that when he was a kid growg up Oh, he sperately wanted to see gay characters on Thursday’s episo of Grey’s Anatomy, he was one of the actors featured the show’s first gay male romance, between his character, tern Dr.

The two shared a kiss, and Schmt me out as gay.

'GREY'S ANATOMY' SEASON 16: FANS LOVE HOW GAY UPLE NI AND SCHMT SUPPORT EACH OTHER AND WANT TO SEE MORE OF THEM

“As a gay guy myself, tonight’s episo was so special to me.

This is exactly the kd of story I craved as a young gay kid growg up Oh, and blows my md that I’m able to brg life to Dr. “As a lbian myself, you have no ia how much means that gay people are out there reprentg gay characters, ” add another.

'GREY'S ANATOMY' CASTS ALEX LANDI AS SHOW'S FIRST GAY MALE SURGEON

“This is hontly such an amazg thg, ” he wrote, “As a gay man myself, is so great to see you be able to be yourself real life and on tv. Dpe beg troduced send to Levi, Ni is ially the first openly gay male surgeon Grey’s Anatomy. Schmt is signifint for beg one of the first openly gay ma characters and the first gay seri regular the show.

GREY'S ANATOMY CHARACTER LAMENTS YEARS 'WASTED' TO GAY SHAME

"I hope the fact that I'm gay isn't the most tertg part of me, " the Grey's Anatomy star tells PEOPLE exclively. Knight is gay, he has nfirmed exclively to PEOPLE. “While I prefer to keep my personal life private, I hope the fact that I’m gay isn’t the most tertg part of me.

Among the stg chang teed up for this season is the addn of newer Alex Landi, who will play the seri’ first-ever gay male surgeon. We don’t yet know how many episos he’ll be or any further tails about his character, but even the news that a half-Korean, half-Italian man will be the first gay surgeon on the show is stirrg up excement among fans.

Introducg a gay male character is pecially huge for gay fans, who n appreciate Landi’s stg on the show multiple ways. Other fans lled out how long took Grey’s to troduce a gay male surgeon.