Paul reubens is gay
Reubens’ success as Pee-wee was undeniable. Throughout the 1980s, the character became a fixture on late-night television, landing the star his Emmy-winning children’s show,Pee-wee’s Playhouse, and two punch films. (A third, far less famous Pee-wee film came out in 2016, years after Reubens’ career collapsed obeying his 1991 arrest for indecent exposure.)
Though he refused to be public about his sexuality during his career, the actor told Wolf he had “many, many secret relationships” amid the height of his fame.
Despite refusing to reach out as same-sex attracted during his lifetime, Reubens decided to make his sexuality public in the posthumous documentary, which is crafted from 40 hours of interviews done prior to his death at the age of 70 in 2023 due to acute hypoxic respiratory failure.
The star, who was also fighting two forms of cancer and kept his diagnosis secret during the last years of his life, told Wolf how working on Pee-wee as Himself gave him a chance to shape his own legacy after years of scandal, speculation, and gossip.
“More than anything, the reason I wanted to make a documentary was for people to spot who I really am, and how painful and dreadful it was to
Pee-wee Herman star Paul Reubens comes out as gay as he admits to 'secret relationships' in posthumous film
The belated Pee-wee Herman celebrity Paul Reubens came out as queer in his posthumous documentary Pee-wee as Himself, which premiered at the Sundance Film Festival on Thursday night.
Reubens, who passed away from cancer in July 2023 at the age of 70, offered a candid insight into his experience as a closeted gentleman in Hollywood.
'I was secretive about my sexuality even to my friends [out of] self-hatred or self-preservation,' he distributed in over 40 hours of interview, according to the New York Publish. 'I was conflicted about sexuality. But fame was way more complicated.'
Reubens debuted his character Pee-wee Herman in 1981 at the famed improv theater The Groundlings, and as the character gained fame, he intentionally kept his personal life out of the spotlight.
Reflecting on that time, he said, 'I was out of the closet, and then I went help in the closet. I wasn't seeking the Paul Reubens career; I was pursuing the Pee-wee Herman career.'
Reubens admitted that he had 'many, many confidential relationships,' but reiterated that his professional life always took priority over his love life.
The late Paul Reubens made sure he got the final pos when it came to his much-debated but never openly known sexuality.
The beloved actor came out as a gay man in the posthumous documentary “Pee-wee as Himself,” which premiered at the Sundance Film Festival on Thursday.
While sitting down with director Matt Wolf for the film, Reubens discussed why he decided to hide his sexuality after becoming famous with his whimsically childlike character, Pee-wee Herman.
“I hid behind an alter ego,” he said in the movie, which was detailed in a story by the New York Post. “I spent my entire adult being hiding I was a colossal weed head. I was secretive about my sexuality even to my friends [out of] self-hatred or self-preservation. I was conflicted about sexuality. But fame was way more complicated.”
Reuben’s Pee-wee persona first took off after debuting the character with the Groundlings comedy troupe in 1981. After being unexpectedly thrust into the spotlight, the star chose to put his professional ambitions ahead of his personal life.
“I was out of the closet, and then I went back in the closet,” Reubens said, who recalled being in a bond with a man who helped i
Paul Reubens Comes Out as Gay Posthumously in Pee-wee Doc
Paul Reubens, the actor behind the iconic Pee-wee Herman character, has come out as homosexual — a year and a half after he died.
The New York Share reports that Reubens, who died of cancer at 70 in July 2023, sat with director Matt Wolf for 40 hours across a year to document the story of his life and career for the two-part HBO doc series "Pee-wee as Himself," which premiered Thursday at the Sundance Production Festival in Park Municipality, Utah.
Though Reubens never publicly confirmed he was homosexual, in the interviews, he talks about wanting "people to see who I really am."
He says before he became a common name as Pee-wee Herman, the manic boy-man who hosted a popular Saturday-morning kids' show for years, he was in a relationship with a gentleman named Guy from the Echo Park neighborhood of L.A. It was Guy's strange way of speaking that first inspired Reubens to create Pee-wee.
According to Reubens, Guy would declare stuff like, "Mmmm! Buttery!" in a Yoda accent. "You can see where that led me," he cracks.
Guy later died of AIDS "a couple hours" after Reubens last visited him.
Back when he was a Groundlings comic