Severance star Tramell Tillman’s mother feared coming out would ‘ruin’ her son’s career
Severance star Tramell Tillman (Getty)
Severance star Tramell Tillman (Getty)
Severance‘s Tramell Tillman, who plays Mr Milchick, has shared the moment he came out as gay to his mother, revealing her fear was it could “ruin” his career.
That fear was clearly unfounded given Tillman’s breakout success from the popular Apple TV+ series. The actor, 40, has also starred opposite Tom Cruise in Mission Impossible: The Final Reckoning.
But it’s not an irrational one, given the impact that coming out has had for some actors in the past. Even young actors have felt the need to hide their sexuality, as Wednesday‘s Hunter Doohan recently discussed.
Speaking to Variety, Tillman shared that the first time he came out to his mum was while driving to see his grandmother during the Christmas and New Year holidays. He was 20 at the time and blurted out, “Mom, I’m bisexual,” all while looking at the road. “Well, how’s that going for you?” she responded.
Tillman then came out to her as gay years later. Her response, as told to Variety, was: “I don’t want this to ruin your career, I don’t want you to be blackballed, I don’t want you to be pigeonholed.” But along with her concern came unconditional love as she also told Tillman, “Anyone you bring home, I will embrace him as my son.”
The actor also discussed the role that religion played in his household growing up. “My mom used church as a coping mechanism,” he said while his dad rejected it. It was an attitude Tillman was uncomfortable with. “I felt that God and the art saved my life. I’m a person who still prays and believes,” he also said.
Tillman has made history as the first openly gay Black man to nominated for Best Supporting Actor in a Drama Series category for his role as Seth Milchick on Severance. Variety reports it is the only Emmy acting category still to crown a Black winner.
Tillman also appeared in the most recent Mission Impossible film as Captain Jack Bledsoe, who helmed the rescue submarine USS Ohio. A piece of marketing for the film featuring Tillman attracted some attention because it referred to the submarine as “his sub” which people enjoyed imagining referred to a dom/sub relationship instead.
Severance is streaming on Apple TV+.
