Former actor James Haven, 53, brother of Angelina Jolie and son of Jon Voight and Marcheline Bertrand, recently made a deeply personal revelation.
Speaking on his ex-wife Romi Imbelli’s Substack livestream, Haven shared something that he has kept a secret all his adult life: he is gay.
The announcement comes more than two years after Imbelli moved to annul their marriage, reportedly citing the reason as “fraud.”
Highlights
- James Haven, Angelina Jolie’s older brother, recently came out as gay at 53.
- He shared the update on his ex-wife Romi Imbelli’s Substack two years after they married and split.
- Imbelli said she felt deeply hurt by Haven, but has found a way to reconcile and still considers him her “life partner.”
Actor and life coach Imbelli married Haven on August 12, 2024, in an intimate ceremony in Laguna Beach, California, and reportedly filed for annulment 15 days later.
“I no longer feel the need to apologize for the parts of me that make me who I am,” Haven said in the video.
James Haven spoke about his struggles to “fit in” as he came out as gay
On August 6, James Haven read out a statement about his orientation as he came out on Imbelli’s Substack.
It was the 21st chapter of Imbelli’s digital memoir Breathe Mija, titled Two Souls Finally Free, in which she documented her life, including her relationship with Haven.
“When I was a little boy, I was absolutely obsessed with the Disney princesses,” Haven admitted. “I would sneak glitter onto my cheeks, swipe mascara onto my lashes, and for those moments, I felt like magic.”
Haven said he “didn’t have the language back then” to explain why such activities made him feel more authentic, and he “dimmed his light” to “fit in.”
“I started wondering if that sparkle was something I had to hide to be accepted by the ‘normal’ boys around me. Like so many gay kids, I learned to question parts of myself long before I learned to celebrate them."
Now, he wishes he could tell his younger self to be free of such constraints and be himself.
“It was never about pretending to be someone else. It was about letting a part of myself shine that had always been there,” he added.
Haven said he hopes his family chooses “love over fear”
Haven explained that he decided to come out now because he was “tired of hiding.”
“Coming out isn't about becoming someone new,” he said, “it's about allowing everyone else to meet the person who has been here all along.”
“I hope my family and others can choose love over fear, understanding over judgment, and connection over the beliefs that may have kept us apart,” he continued.
“I hope they can look beyond the labels and simply see me with the same heart, the same laugh, the same soul they've always known.”
“That little boy with glitter on his face and mascara on his lashes was never confused, broken, or something to be ashamed of. He was simply gay. He was joyful. He was brave before he even knew it,” Haven concluded.
Haven, like Jolie, had been estranged from his father for a long time, reportedly over the fallout from his parents' 1976 divorce and tensions over financial support.
They reconciled in 2007 after Bertrand’s demise.
According to Page Six, Haven is set to launch a weekly podcast, Safe Haven with James Haven, in which he will talk to guests about their “life choices and turning points.”
Imbelli still considers Haven her “love” despite being “hurt” by him
Romi Imbelli showed immense support for her ex-husband as he came out, but she also admitted how hurt she was when she had a hunch during their short-lived marriage that her husband might be gay.
The two had been close friends for more than two decades before they decided to tie the knot.
“I knew it, and I wanted to support you and love you, and then I didn’t want to believe it because then it would mean losing you in that capacity, which I couldn’t,” The Real L Word star said.
She confessed that she fought an internal “battle” over supporting Haven no matter what, while dealing with having to “break the lie” that she “knew so badly.”
However, she had Haven’s full support to tell her side of the story in her memoir, which, in turn, helped her move on from the heartbreak and to cherish the bond she had with him outside a romantic relationship.
“It was a beautiful gift to me, from someone that I love and was hurt by, and in return for him doing that for me, I was able to return the gift of saying… ‘Can I forgive you? And I do,’” she said.
“We do life together,” Imbelli stated, clarifying that she still considers Haven her life partner. “You are not my close friend. You are my love. And you happen to be gay.”
Imbelli previously said that splitting from Haven was a “difficult decision”
Imbelli, who came out as bisexual on The Real L Word, was previously married to musician Dusty Ray from 2011 to 2013 and chef Charles Imbelli from 2015 to 2019.
In 2016, she and Charles had a daughter, Frankie.
Imbelli first spoke about splitting from Haven seven months after filing for annulment, in a statement shared with People magazine.
“This has been a deeply personal and difficult decision, but one that I feel is necessary for my own well-being,” she said at the time in March 2025.
“I appreciate the support of those who have stood by me, and at this time, I am focused on moving forward with clarity and peace.”
“I’m finding healing through this process by putting my truth into words in my upcoming memoir, where I will share more about this chapter of my life and the journey that led me here,” Imbelli shared.
A year later, she published the first chapter of Breathe Mija on Substack in April 2026.
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