Wentworth Miller comes out as gay

"Prison Break" star Wentworth Miller has come out as gay.

The actor went public with his sexuality Wednesday in a letter to Saint Petersburg International Film Festival director Maria Averbakh turning down an invitation to appear next month at the event.

The letter was posted on the Gay & Lesbian Alliance Against Defamation's (GLAAD) website.

"Thank you for your kind invitation," the actor, 41, wrote. "As someone who has enjoyed visiting Russia in the past and can also claim a degree of Russian ancestry, it would make me happy to say yes. However, as a gay man, I must decline."

He went on to say, "I am deeply troubled by the current attitude toward and treatment of gay men and women by the Russian government. The situation is in no way acceptable, and I cannot in good conscience participate in a celebratory occasion hosted by a country where people like myself are being systematically denied their basic right to live and love openly."

Gay relationships were decriminalized in Russia in 1993, but gays have no civil partnership or marriage rights, and there are no laws banning anti-gay discrimination.

In June, Russia amended its child-protection law to forbid "the propagandizing of non-traditional sexual relations among minors."

While the law avoids the words "gay" or "homosexual," critics say its intent is clearly directed against the LGBT community.

A number of gay activists have called for boycotting the 2014 Winter Olympics, which are scheduled to be held in the Russian city of Sochi in February.