Priscilla Director Comes Out { Gives Emotional Speach-Australia)

  BY CALUM ROSS

The Adventures of Priscilla, Queen of the Desert director Stephan Elliott came out as gay in an emotional speech at the 2012 Australian Academy of Cinema and Television Arts award ceremony last night.

Speaking in the Sydney Opera House, Elliott told the audience:

'I was scared of who I was. I basically was scared that I was gay. Even after Priscilla, I stayed offshore basically because I was frightened of my family. And tonight I'm coming out.'

His announcement was met with rapturous applause.

Clearly emotional, the director joked 'I'm tearing up' before urging other high-profile members of the industry to join him in supporting equal marriage rights for same-sex couples in Australia.

Elliott also used his time on stage to take a swipe at film critics who had given poor reviews to his latest film A Few Best Men.

A Few Best Men, starring Olivia Newton-John, Kevin Bishop, Xavier Samuel and Rebel Wilson, is a comedy which follows the misadventures of a groom and his three best men who travel to Australia for a wedding. The film took in over $1.8 million during its opening weekend in Australia.

Australia's Channel Nine, delayed the broadcast of the award ceremony before removing Elliott's speech from the final show.

Winners at the AACTA award ceremony included Judy Davis for best actress, Daniel Henshall for best actor while Nelson Woss and Julie Ryan's Red Dog scooped up the prize for best film.

gaystarnews.com