Actor Ryan Phillippe raised some eyebrows over the holiday weekend when he posted a photo with his friend Matt Sinn looking comfy and cozy by the Christmas tree with the caption “Merry Christmas from our house to yours.” Turns out it was a joke about being gay or coming out that didn’t land. (screen capture via Instagram – click to enlarge) Phillippe’s friend Matt Sinn seemed to egg the joke on further when he shared another pic of the two on his own Instagram Story with the caption, “He love me.” But as it became apparent people were confused, he returned to clarify that Ryan Phillippe “didn’t come out” and he shared a photo of “the girlfriends” snapped in the same pose and the guys. (screen capture via Instagram)(screen capture via Instagram) It’s not unreasonable for people to believe there was something behind the post as the holidays are a popular time for some LGBTQ peeps to come out or share romantic partners for the first time. Plus, it’s worth noting that the original caption also included an emoji of two guys holding hands. So it’s pretty clear there was some kind of “gay ha-ha” in mind when he posted the pic. It appears when the joke went awry, Phillippe removed the emoji. (screen capture via Instagram) Amid the comments, Phillippe returned to his own post responding to the reactions writing, “people r so dumb.” Some followers remarked that joking about being gay and then ‘proving’ you’re not by posting a pic of the girlfriends is kinda homophobic. One Instagram user wrote, “Why would you say that? You post a pic of you and another dude cozy and that caption..what are people supposed to think?” “Do you know how many lgbt people are not allowed to go home on Christmas?” added another commenter. “How many are disowned by their family? How many commit suicide every year? How many are homeless?” “Christmas can be one of the most difficult times for LGBT people and you make a joke about being gay,” he added. “You can completely frack off. I hope your children will never face the horror that some of us have.” It wasn’t just a few people that didn’t get the ‘joke.’ Some folks really thought Phillippe had come out, others thought it was not cute. https://twitter.com/Itsjustteajay26/status/1475108106501820425 https://twitter.com/queeredupguy/status/1475516543471661062 https://twitter.com/NoteFromSELF/status/1475194645202276361 https://twitter.com/the_lembo/status/1475572479842140162 https://twitter.com/MarcyLane/status/1475249372799504389 https://twitter.com/RonBF/status/1474926419004297219 In all honesty, Ryan Phillippe has known for a while he can push some gay buttons online. Back in 2017, he nearly broken the internet with this snowy Instagram post. https://www.instagram.com/p/BdLIXVKHE6J/?utm_source=ig_web_copy_link