True Blood Nelsan Ellis vs. Luke Grimes Beef: 'Lafayette' Slams Co-Star For Refusal To Play Gay

True Blood's Nelsan Ellis has come out swinging against fellow actor Luke Grimes decision not to play gay.

Grimes made his debut in the popular HBO series in 2013 as James, a vampire who spent much of last season in the arms of Deborah Ann Woll's Jessica.

This season however, James had a new face - actor Nathan Parsons.

Grimes issued a statement when he left the show stating he departed over filming schedules, but True Blood higher-ups insist he didn't like where the storyline was going. As the seventh and final season began, we now know why - his character was revealed to be bisexual, and a romance between Ellis' character, Lafayette, and James was in the works.

Ellis all but confirmed this to Vulture yesterday in an interview saying, "I just think that, you're an actor. We're all sitting there going, 'You quit your job because ... really?' I'm just... I'm over him. You quit your job because you don't want to play a gay part? As if it's ... You know what? I'm going to stop talking."

But he continued, "You make a statement when you do something like that. You make a ... big statement, when you go, 'I don't want to play this part because it's gay.' If you have a child, if you have a son, and he comes out as gay, what are you going to do? If you have a daughter who comes out gay...? You just made a statement, and it has ripple effects."

Ellis is surprised that Grimes didn't know to expect the unexpected when it comes to True Blood. The show is known for its steamy sexual content and exploration of relationships of all kinds. Said Ellis, "I'm supposed to do what my boss tells me to do, as an actor. I can't approach a character with judgment. I certainly can't tell my boss, 'I can act what I want to act, but not what you tell me to act,' especially on a show where you come in, knowing what it is."