Pee-wee Herman actor Paul Reubens opened up about his sexuality in the new documentary Pee-wee as Himself.
In the new project, which premiered at the 2025 Sundance Film Festival on Thursday, January 23, critics learned that the actor had a secret boyfriend named Guy from Echo Park, California.
“I was secretive about my sexuality even to my friends [out of] self-hatred or self-preservation,” Reubens shared in the documentary via the New York Post. “I was conflicted about sexuality. But fame was way more complicated.”
Sitting down with director Matt Wolf for 40 hours worth of interviews, Reubens spoke candidly about his personal life as well as his experience playing the iconic Pee-wee Herman character.
Although Reubens died in July 2023 at the age of 70 after a private cancer battle, he made his intentions about the documentary clear.
“More than anything, the reason I wanted to make a documentary was for people to see who I really am and how painful and dreadful it was to be labeled something I wasn’t,” Reubens said in his last audio recording made on the day before his death. “To be labeled a pariah; to have people be scared of you, or untrusting.”
Reubens said that he had “many, many secret relationships,” but that his career always came before his love life.
His Hollywood status suffered a major blow in 1991 when he was arrested at an adult movie theater and charged with indecent exposure. (He later pleaded no contest.)
“I kept who I was a secret for a very long time. That really backfired when I got arrested,” he said in the documentary. “People had never seen a photo of me other than Pee-wee Herman. And all of a sudden, I had a Charlie Manson mugshot. I lost control of my anonymity. It was devastating.”
More than three decades after the incident, Reubens said he still felt the effects of his actions.
“It’s shocking what horrible, awful stuff people think about me,” he shared. “It’s still a significant footnote.”
Related: Pee-wee Herman Actor Paul Reubens’ Cause of Death Revealed
Paul Reubens’ official cause of death has been revealed. The late Pee-wee Herman actor’s death certificate, which was obtained by People on Friday, September 8, states that Reubens died of acute hypoxic respiratory failure. The condition occurs when there’s not enough oxygen or too much carbon dioxide in the body, which can be caused by […]
Ultimately, it appears Reubens wants his fans to get an honest, fuller picture of his entire life that included secrets that may finally be coming to light.
“I was out of the closet, and then I went back in the closet,” he shared. “I wasn’t pursuing the Paul Reubens career, I was pursuing the Pee-wee Herman career.”
Pee-wee as Himself is slated to stream on Max later this year.
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