Tramell Tillman is opening up about the emotional moment he came out as gay.
In a new interview with Variety, the 40-year-old Severance star recalled first coming out as bisexual to his mom while driving to Petersburg, Virginia in his 20s.
“Mom, I’m bisexual,” he told her during the holiday season. Her immediate response? “Well, how’s that going for you?”
He reflected on the memory with a laugh.
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Years later, he shared his truth again, this time with no ambiguity.
“I’m gay,” he told her.
“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,” she told him, adding, “Anyone you bring home, I will embrace him as my son.”
Those fears turned out to be unfounded: he is now the first openly gay Black man to earn an Emmy nomination in the supporting actor in a drama category for his role as Seth Milchick on Apple TV+’s Severance.
“Playing Milchick is like putting on a suit of armor,” he shared. “This man has layers upon layers upon layers, and every movement of Milchick is 100% intentional.”
In addition to his breakout TV role, Tramell recently appeared alongside Tom Cruise in Mission: Impossible – The Final Reckoning, further cementing his place as one of Hollywood’s rising stars.
Find out which other stars just recently came out as LGBTQ+ in 2025.