Less than a month after Colton Underwood publicly came out as gay, he’s revealing that he was actually “blackmailed” to do so.
Speaking with Variety, the former Bachelor shared that his confession was prompted out of fear.
“I’ll just say it. I, at one point, during my rock bottom and spiral, was getting blackmailed,” he shared. “Nobody knows I was blackmailed.”
Underwood told the outlet that after visiting a spa known for its gay clientele, he received an anonymous email from someone claiming to have nude photos of him at the establishment and threatening to “out” him to the press.
The former NFL player never saw the photos, but the threat still worried him enough that he forwarded the email to his publicist — the only person to whom he previously disclosed his sexuality. This ultimately forced him to have an honest conversation about his sexual orientation.
Underwood announced he was gay during an interview Good Morning America, which aired on April 14.
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