The Untold Truth of Billy Porter
Dec 29 2020
Billy Porter broke out into the mainstream in 2018 with his role as Pray Tell in Pose, and he's truly seized the moment to show the world that he's here to stay on his own terms. Keep watching to discover everything you need to know about the most fabulous man in show business.

Billy Porter is clearly at the top of his game now, reveling in the life of an entertainer. But did he always want to be an actor? As it turns out, very much so. In 2019, he confirmed this ambition to W Magazine as he revealed,

"From the time I was eleven years old. I went to Reizenstein Middle School in Pittsburgh and I was introduced to musical theater and I fell in love. I found my tribe. The thing about it was that I couldn't do any of the sort of traditional masculine things that are required. I wasn't good at gym. I wasn't good at sports."

Porter took to acting and singing right away, which helped him discover who he truly was inside. As he explained,

"I don't know if there was something in that that gave me a clue that maybe this might be something that I could do, and be popular doing it, and not be bullied anymore."

Destiny really clicked into place when he saw Jennifer Holliday perform at the Tony Awards, and he decided that he was going to act professionally in musical theater himself.

Keep watching to see The Untold Truth of Billy Porter.

#BillyPorter

Early acting ambitions | 0:00

First kiss | 1:14

Fighting homophobia | 2:05

Surviving abuse | 3:12

Getting Kinky | 4:20

Finding love | 5:29

A role just for him | 6:37

History-making Emmy | 7:42

Secret skill | 8:32

Art as activism | 9:24

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