Julianne Hough Reveals That She's 'Not Straight'
Former Dancing With the Stars champion and current America's Got Talent judge Julianne Hough married NHL star Brooks Laich in 2017, but it took four months after their vows for Hough to open up to Laich about her sexuality.
In what she describes as her "massive transformation," Hough told Women's Health that she had to come clean for their growing relationship to flourish. "I was connecting to the woman inside that doesn't need anything, versus the little girl that looked to him to protect me," she explained. "I was like, 'Is he going to love this version of me?' But the more I dropped into my most authentic self, the more attracted he was to me. Now we have a more intimate relationship."
Hough's inner revelation allowed her to share her true self with Laich. "I [told him], 'You know I'm not straight, right?' And he was like, 'I'm sorry, what?' I was like, 'I'm not. But I choose to be with you,'" she revealed. "I think there's a safety with my husband now that I'm unpacking all of this, and there's no fear of voicing things that I've been afraid to admit or that I've had shame or guilt about because of what I've been told or how I was raised."
This isn't the first time Hough got candid about the couple's sex life. In 2019 (via ET), she appeared on Laich's podcast, How Men Think, and revealed an online sex therapist helped them discover their "erotic blueprint."
"My curiosity has saved my life and honestly saved our relationship many times because we've been curious about like, 'Hey, something doesn't feel right. Instead of just accepting it for how it is, let's look into something,' Hough explained. "By almost learning each other's language... it was almost like a menu of how we could please each other sexually, but also intimately."
As far as Laich is concerned, he'll do whatever he can to be the perfect husband for Hough. "As a husband, I just go into full support mode. Whatever my wife needs, whatever I can do, I'm fighting the smallest portion of the fight with her," he told People. "There are certain things in my wife's life that I know she appreciates that help her feel calm and help her feel relaxed, so I double those efforts during that time just to show that I'm there with her and I support her."