Obsession star Richard Armitage talks sexuality and coming out as teenager

The popular actor, who stars in Netflix's Obsession, usually keeps his personal life very private

    Obsession star Richard Armitage has discussed his sexuality for in a new interview, tellingRadio Times about how he came out as a teenager.

    The actor, who has starred in hit shows includingand explained: “[It] happened when I was 19 – to anybody who mattered – and I was always waiting for that question to punch me in the face, and it never did. I thought, ‘Are people being polite, or is it that they don’t want to know?’”

    WATCH: Trailer for Netflix's racy thriller Obsession

    He added: “I don’t know that I ever wanted to put myself in front of the work I was doing, anything about my family or personal life. I just thought, ‘Let the work speak for itself.’”

    The star, 51, was also full of praise for the younger generation, adding: “I love the idea that whatever gender, sexuality, the fluidity of who you love, how you identify, is not fixed. 

    “That was always a thing: if I declare who I am and my sexuality, then I’m saying it’s fixed and I don’t know that, or if I might feel something for somebody further down the line. I doubt it, but I don’t know.”

    MORE: Richard Armitage's 5 best TV show and film performances

    MORE: Exclusive: Richard Armitage on filming steamy scenes for Obsession, intimacy coordinators and his 'messy' side

    He also told the Evening Standard that he had discussed the nude scenes in Obsession with his partner, explaining: “We did talk about it. I reassured him that it was all going to be fine, and we were being well looked after. Charlie [Murphy] and I have met each other’s partners and gone for dinner.”

    Richard has yet to disclose who he is dating, keeping his personal life deeply private. He did, however, share a snap of a rainbow flag back in 2021, writing to be “grateful for love”. Sharing on Instagram, he wrote: “#idahobit2021 Be grateful for love, however it finds you. Be happy that you have the capacity to feel it, whoever it’s for. It’s a short life. Live it, in Love.”

    The star is currently appearing in the hit risque Netflix show opposite Happy Valley actress Charlie, where he plays a surgeon who engages in a passionate affair with his son’s fiancee. Have you watched the new series yet? 

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