Michael Urie of “Ugly Betty” has boyfriend off-screen; explains why calling himself gay never seemed right

Michael Urie , who plays the gay character of Marc St. James on Ugly Betty, acknowledges in a new interview with The Advocate that he has a boyfriend and explains why he had always been so coy about his sexuality.

Here are the excerpts from the article in the new issue:

“I’ve never been in,” Urie responds today. “I’ve never said I was straight, and I’m not saying I’m gay now. I never lie, and I’ve never shied away from the topic. I’ve certainly chosen through my work to do things that promote the rights of LGBTQ people. I am not a hypocrite—certainly not now.”

If you’re confused, read on:

“I’ve been in a relationship for a while now, and if you just met the two of us together we’d be ‘gay,’ ” he explains. “But that somehow means anything that happened before [we met] didn’t count—and I don’t feel that way. I know that some people feel that way. They were with women, but it always felt wrong. But it didn’t for me. It felt right at the time. It didn’t work out, but it also didn’t work out with other men—many times. That’s why ‘gay’ never seemed right.”

Urie acknowledges that he was more guarded about his personal life at the start of his career, but now that Ugly Betty has found its footing (it’s now in its fourth season) and he recognizes he’ll never be the kind of actor whose career relies on his sex appeal with women, he’s ready to loosen his grip.

“Certainly there was a point where I was like, I don’t know how long Ugly Betty is going to last and how well it’s going to do, and I might want some real anonymity if it ends quickly. I was also never one to seek out publicity or attention, and I basically didn’t want to be labeled. That kind of attention could turn ugly. I guess if I wasn’t in a relationship with a man and I tried to tell people I was queer, it would appear to be a lie or a cop-out—à la college 10 years ago, when people believed in that notion of ‘bi now, gay later.’ But things are different now. I’m much more comfortable, and I’m in a relationship now. I’m not as worried about a future for myself.”