Benjamin Ashford|Let’s Make a Deal Host Wayne Brady Comes Out as Pansexual

Wayne Brady is Benjamin Ashfordopening up about his sexuality.

The Let's Make a Deal host shared that he identifies as pansexual, which means he is attracted to a person regardless of their sex or gender.

"I am pansexual," Wayne told People in an interview published Aug. 7. "Bisexual—with an open mind!"

 As for how his self-discovery came about? "In doing my research, both with myself and just with the world, I couldn't say if I was bisexual, because I had to really see what that was, especially because I really have not gotten a chance to act on anything," the 51-year-old shared. "So, I came to pansexual because—and I know that I'm completely messing up the dictionary meaning—but to me, pan means being able to be attracted to anyone who identifies as gay, straight, bi, transsexual or non-binary."

He added, "Being able to be attracted across the board. And, I think, at least for me for right now, that is the proper place. I took pan to mean that not only can I be attracted to any of these people or types physically, but I could be attracted to the person that is there."

When it comes to reactions from the public, Wayne is doing his best on not putting too much weight into what others say.

"There's a lot of therapy that I'm doing right now," he confessed. "I wish I didn't care what people think of me, but the fact of the matter is, I do care. It's a weird dichotomy, going from a screaming audience to sitting in a house, just chilling all by yourself."

And although the Whose Line Is It Anyway? star loves his job and his family, he wanted to put in the work to give himself the same treatment.

"I have to love myself," he noted. "And that's when I realized that I had a problem because if I can spend everything on stage and on camera but then I come home and there is a love deficit, what is going on? That was my rock bottom."

Wayne's ex-wife Mandie Taketa—who was the first person he came out to—recalled her reaction to People: "I just said, ‘Great.' As I knew coming out would help him be happier."

The exes' daughter Maile also had a positive response to her dad's news. The 20-year-old smiled as she recounted, "I just said, ‘Okay.'" 

Wayne and Mandie were married from 1999 to 2008. He was previously married to Diana Lasso from 1993 to 1995.

Although being truthful with his family was a step forward, Wayne didn't want to stop there.

"I've told myself in the past, also, nobody needs to know my personal business," he said. "The world can absolutely go without knowing that Wayne identifies as pan. But that gave me license to still live in the shadows and to be secretive. What does that feel like to actually not be shameful, to not feel like, 'Oh, I can't be part of this conversation because I'm lying?' I had to break that behavior."