White Collar star Matt Bomer comes out of the closet

Matt Bomer, star of USA's White Collar and living Greek statue, is having a big moment right now. Even though he's been leading the aforementioned police procedural for two and a half years, he's recently signed on to a whole mess of big-name projects, including the Soderbergh-directed stripper tale Magic Mike, the film adaptation of The Normal Heart, and a guest role on Glee. And this weekend, he publicly addressed his sexuality for the first time while accepting an award at the Steve Chase Humanitarian Awards. He didn't quite go the Ellen route — there was no "yep, I'm gay" — but instead thanked his partner, Simon Halls, and their three children in his acceptance speech:

Bomer was generally considered to be in the "glass closet," meaning that many in the industry knew he was gay, and many on the internet assumed/saw those pictures of him kissing a guy; he simply never talked about it. He was basically the Anderson Cooper of the basic-cable world. And when asked by Details about the speculation over his sexuality, he basically copped to the fact that sometimes your career concerns keep you from coming out, saying, "I have a network and a show riding on my shoulders." Not exactly the thing you might like to hear from a relatively famous gay person, but points for honesty.

Many assumed this meant he would Sean Hayes it and come out once his star was waning, but it looks like those people were wrong; he's primed to be bigger than ever. Maybe he was inspired by the several vitriolic speeches about the importance of being out featured in The Normal Heart? Just a thought.

Anyway, kudos to Bomer, even if this news is greeted with more of a "well, duh" than anything else.