Thomas Jane Was Not a Hustler In Real Life

Thomas Jane, who starred as a well-endowed hustler in the just-canceled HBO series Hung, says he was misquoted in a Los Angeles Times story that implied he was once a prostitute himself.

In October, Jane discussed his years as a struggling young actor with the Times, saying he was open to sexual experimentation. "I was 18," he was quoted as saying. "I wasn't averse to going down to Santa Monica Boulevard and letting a guy buy me a sandwich. Know what I mean?" Jane now tells The Fix's Anna David that he was misquoted and the implication that he hustled is incorrect.

"In the interviews that I did, I never said I was a prostitute," Jane tells David. "I was talking about my [early] time in Hollywood: I said that I'd had a sexually adventurous time and I was trying to relate that to how I play a prostitute on TV-- trying to relate my experience to my character's experience -- and well, people heard what they wanted to hear."

Jane says he didn't ask for a correction because he didn't immediately realize the implication had been made. "I suppose 'sexually adventurous youth' wasn't as much of a headline grabber," he tells David.

In September, Jane confused many by saying he'd end the series if forced to "end up with a penis in [his] mouth." Jane later stated it was a joke, telling New York magazine, "Of course, everything I said was meant in good humor, good fun." He added, "You know, I'm a fan of the gay community, just because I've grown up in Hollywood around them, I have family members who are gay, really good friends, co-workers, a lot of the writers on Hung are gay, so it's amusing to think, obviously I would never be able to tell HBO what to do, or the writers how to write the character. But for me, it's an expression of what I find interesting about the show."

Jane's credentials with the LGBT community remain solid, however. The actor previously revealed he's very proud to have been part of "one of the longest gay kisses in screen history," referring to the 1998 film The Velocity of Gary, in which he played another hustler, opposite Vincent D'Onofrio.