Twenty years ago, if a celebrity was brave enough to come out of the closet, it was a huge event and usually involved some sort of harrowing confession splashed across the cover of People magazine.


Today, coming out is a much quieter, often nonchalant affair.


In honor of National Coming Out Day, we're taking a look at 10 celebrities who came out in subtle, incredibly understated ways.


Check out the slideshow below and let us know what you think about this new trend of the low key coming out by leaving a comment below.




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  • Raven-Symone


    Raven-Symone <a href="http://www.huffingtonpost.com/2013/08/02/raven-symone-comes-out_n_3697024.html" target="_blank">came out via Twitter</a> in early August 2013 after long-term speculation surrounding her sexuality. <blockquote class="twitter-tweet"><p>I can finally get married! Yay government! So proud of you</p>&mdash; Raven-Symonè (@MissRavenSymone) <a href="https://twitter.com/MissRavenSymone/statuses/363360946905153536">August 2, 2013</a></blockquote> <script async src="//platform.twitter.com/widgets.js" charset="utf-8"></script> Raven-Symone confirmed the subtle coming out by retweeting her followers' congratulatory tweets. In a statement to <a href="http://www.eonline.com/news/445392/raven-symone-s-gay-marriage-tweet-explained-star-not-getting-married-but-it-s-great-to-know-i-can-now" target="_blank">E! News</a>, the actress said: "I am very happy that gay marriage is opening up around the country and is being accepted. I was excited to hear today that more states legalized gay marriage. I, however am not currently getting married, but it is great to know I can now, should I wish to."




  • Wanda Sykes, 2008


    The comedian and actress came out in November 2008 <a href="http://thestrippodcast.blogspot.com/2008/11/wanda-sykes-lv-gay-rally-im-proud-to-be.html" target="_hplink">while speaking at an anti-Prop 8 rally</a> in Las Vegas. Sykes said in part: <blockquote>"I got married October 25th. I don't really talk about my sexual orientation. I felt like I was living my life -- I wasn't in the closet but I was just living my life. Everybody who knows me personally, they know I'm gay. And that's the way people should be able to live our lives, really. We shouldn't have to be standing out here demanding something we automatically should have as citizens of this country."</blockquote>




  • Matt Dallas, 2013


    Former "Kyle XY" star Matt Dallas started 2013 by subtlety coming out in January when he tweeted about his engagement to his boyfriend, musician Blue Hamilton. <blockquote class="twitter-tweet"><p>Starting off the year with a new fiancé, <a href="https://twitter.com/bluehamilton">@bluehamilton</a>. A great way to kick off 2013! <a href="http://t.co/FQ9y4tHe">pic.twitter.com/FQ9y4tHe</a></p>&mdash; matt dallas (@themattdallas) <a href="https://twitter.com/themattdallas/statuses/288159474831745024">January 7, 2013</a></blockquote> <script async src="//platform.twitter.com/widgets.js" charset="utf-8"></script>




  • Matt Bomer, 2012


    The 34-year-old "White Collar" hunk <a href="http://www.huffingtonpost.com/2012/02/13/matt-bomer-comes-out-gay-thanks-partner_n_1272997.html" target="_hplink">thanked his partner,</a> Simon Halls, and his three children during the 2012 Steve Chase Humanitarian Awards, where he received the New Generation Arts and Activism Award for his work in the fight against HIV/AIDS. "I'd really especially like to thank my beautiful family: Simon, Kit, Walker, Henry," he told the crowd. "Thank you for teaching me what unconditional love is. You will always be my proudest accomplishment."




  • Anderson Cooper, 2012


    Anderson Cooper's sexuality had been <a href="http://www.out.com/entertainment/2008/09/22/glass-closet">scrutinized for years</a> but it wasn't until July 2012 that he finally addressed the issue when he <a href="http://andrewsullivan.thedailybeast.com/2012/07/anderson-cooper-the-fact-is-im-gay.html">came out in an email </a> to his friend and fellow journalist, Andrew Sullivan. In Cooper's message, which was posted on Sullivan's blog, "The Dish" on <em>The Daily Beast</em>, the CNN anchor wrote, "The fact is, I'm gay, always have been, always will be, and I couldn’t be any more happy, comfortable with myself, and proud."




  • Jim Parsons, 2012


    New York Times scribe Patrick Healy confirmed "The Big Bang Theory" star's sexuality<a href="http://www.nytimes.com/2012/05/27/theater/jim-parsons-prepares-for-his-lead-role-in-harvey.html?_r=1" target="_hplink"> as part of a profile</a>. The revelation came late in the article, when Healy describes the 39-year-old actor's role in the 2011 revival of Larry Kramer's HIV/AIDS crisis drama, "The Normal Heart." Healy wrote, "'The Normal Heart' resonated with him on a few levels: Mr. Parsons is gay and in a 10-year relationship, and working with an ensemble again onstage was like nourishment, he said." Though the <em>Times </em>didn't identify Parsons' partner, he has been romantically liked with art director Todd Spiewak (pictured).




  • Amber Heard, 2010


    "I personally think that if you deny something or if you hide something you're inadvertently admitting it's wrong. I don't feel like I'm wrong," said actress Amber Heard, who <a href="http://www.huffingtonpost.com/2010/12/06/amber-heard-lesbian_n_792419.html">came out as bisexual while attending GLAAD's 25th anniversary party</a>. Heard has starred in movies like as "Pineapple Express" and "Zombieland."




  • Chris Colfer, 2009


    The "Glee" actor came out on the "Chelsea Lately Show" in December 2009: Chelsea Handler: "Your character on the show's gay. We know that you're gay. That's good for you. Congratulations. Don't be shy about that. Seriously. You shouldn't be shy about that because every time... an actor like you is helping a zillion other people that are scared to talk about their sexuality so good for you." Chris Colfer: "Thank you. You know what my answer to that question was prior to coming out -- was that I was straight as every other actor in Hollywood."




  • Jodie Foster, 2013


    Jodie Foster <a href="http://www.huffingtonpost.com/2013/01/13/jodie-foster-gay-golden-globes_n_2469439.html#slide=1928616">ended years of speculation about her sexuality</a> when she accepted her Cecil B. Demille award at the 70th Golden Globe Awards in 2013. In her speech, which was her first public statement about her being gay, Foster said, "I already did my coming out about a thousand years ago, back in the Stone Age. In those very quaint days when a fragile young girl would open up to trusted friends, and family, coworkers and then gradually, proudly, to everyone who knew her."




  • David Hyde Pierce, 2007


    "Frasier" actor David Hyde Pierce kept a low profile and <a href="http://www.afterelton.com/blog/brianjuergens/exclusive-david-hyde-pierce-is-officially-out">subtly came out</a> in an article on <em>CNN</em> where he mentioned his longtime partner, TV writer and producer Brian Hargrove. Later, while on "The View," Pierce spoke about Hargrove and his sexuality and said,"What you choose to talk about yourself is a personal decision."