Heroes and Scream star Hayden Panettiere has come out as bisexual in her memoir.
After previously being “afraid” to talk about her sexuality, Panettierre decided to speak about being bisexual in This Is Me: A Reckoning, which will be released on May 19, per an exclusive preview in Us Weekly.
“That’s something about me I was never able to share with the world, because it was just never the right time," she told Us Weekly of her sexuality. “It was either I was too young, and I was being forced to be perfect at all times. I was not encouraged to just be myself. Then came the period where it felt like people coming out, especially women, saying that they were bisexual or liked girls, was a fad.”
Panettiere added that she was “afraid” that if she were honest about her sexuality, it would seem like she was “jumping on the bandwagon.”
“I wanted to make sure that I really sat down and chose my words carefully and was able to tell my story in an honest way, that people understood,” she said. “On one hand, it’s sad that I had to wait till I was 36 years old to share that part of me, but better late than never, right?”
Panettiere said talking about her bisexuality with Us Weekly was the “first time I got to say it out loud.” Though she noted that she has never fallen in love with a woman, she shared that she has dated a few.
“It was scary, though, because there were paparazzi always waiting for me outside, to follow me everywhere,” she said. “I had very little privacy. I have dated women. I was much more into women even as a child than I was men.”
She added, “I have explored it, but because I hadn’t shared this with anybody, I didn’t really have the courage to throw myself fully emotionally into it. Because then if I did fall in love, that wasn’t something that I wanted to ever have to hide.”
Aside from bisexuality, Panettiere spoke to Us Weekly about other revelations from her forthcoming memoir, including her experiences with a stalker and postpartum depression.
This Is Me: A Reckoning will be released on May 19.
