‘Criminal Minds’ Star Shemar Moore Confronts Gay Rumors On Instagram As Fans Ponder Derek Morgan’s Fate

“Criminal Minds” actor Shemar Moore shot down rumors he was gay in an Instagram post Saturday. The star, who plays agent Derek Morgan in the CBS series, posted a shirtless picture of himself.

“Awwwwwww s---.... Let the controversy begin!” he wrote. “I love him.. I hate him.. He’s straight.. He’s gay... He’s sweet.. He’s arrogant... Well, I would just like to say I LOVE women and life and people!!!” Moore added: “I do not discriminate or allow people to feel small.... PERIOD!!! Say what you want... I am SHEMAR FRANKLIN MOORE... PERIOD!!! Heeeeeeeeey BABY GIRLS n Fans!!! Happy Saturday!!! Keep it SILLY n SEXY!!! Kisses n Thangs!!!” The post was liked 60,500 times by his 1.7 million followers.

Though he took the time to address apparent questions about his sexuality, Moore, 45, has been busy promoting Season 11 of “Criminal Minds.” When Jennifer Love Hewitt left the show after Season 10 -- because she was pregnant in real life and wanted to spend time with her second child -- Moore’s character, Derek Morgan, was given one of the main story lines.

Fans were shocked when Morgan was kidnapped by a group of men he tried to bring down in previous episodes. “Criminal Minds” teased Morgan will be tortured in the episode and Moore has excessively promoted the highly anticipated episode, aptly named “Derek,” on his official Instagram account.

He posted a behind-the-scenes picture that shows Morgan slouched on the ground with blood on his hands. “Derek Morgan is DOWN!!!!” he captioned the exclusive photo. “(Behind The Scenes on set shooting)”

In the week leading up to episode 16, Moore shared several promo images. On each one he wrote that “Derek” is a “must watch.” Most fans commented the suspense was eating at them and that they were worried about what was going to happen to Morgan.

Check out “Criminal Minds” Wednesday at 9 p.m. EST on CBS.

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