Bruce Jenner Interview: ‘I’m A Woman,’ ‘I Am Not Gay’

Bruce Jenner opened up about his gender identity and views on his sexuality in his much-anticipated interview with Diane Sawyer Friday night.

Bruce Jenner Interview

“For all intents and purposes, I’m a woman,” Jenner, 65, told Sawyer in a special two-hour edition of ABC News’ 20/20, Bruce Jenner: The Interview.

“People look at me differently. They see you as this macho male, but my heart and my soul and everything that I do in life — it is part of me,” Jenner, 65, said. “That female side is part of me. That’s who I am.”

Jenner first knew that something was different about him when he was eight or nine years old and would secretly try on his sister’s dresses. However, it wasn’t until he wed his first wife Chrystie Scott in the early 70s that he told anyone about his desire to be a woman, though Scott thought that it was something that could be overcome. Jenner also told his second wife Linda Thompson, which spelled the end of that marriage.

Following the end of his marriage to Thompson, Jenner began taking estrogen to begin the process of transitioning. Five years into the hormone treatment, Jenner met and fell in love with Kris Kardashian. After offering a light explanation of what he was going through, he halted the treatments and once again resolved to live his life as a man.

“I look at it this way—Bruce always telling a lie. He’s lived a lie his whole life about who he is. And I can’t do that any longer,” Jenner said. “My brain is much more female than it is male. It’s hard for people to understand that, but that’s what my soul is.”

When Sawyer asked Jenner about what his transition meant for his sexuality, the Olympian said that he was never attracted to men while living as a man. Whether or not he will still be attracted to women while living as a woman, and if that will make him a lesbian is something that Jenner is not yet ready to answer.

“I was never attracted to the guys — the sexuality was totally different from what I’m dealing with. I am not gay. As far as I know, I am heterosexual. I’ve never been with a guy, I’ve always been married, raising kids,” Jenner said, adding when asked if he would be considered a lesbian, “Sexuality is who you’re attracted to, but gender identity is about who you identify with.”

Jenner, who has been back on estrogen for the last year and a half, has had numerous surgeries over the years, including the headline-making tracheal shave. As for further surgeries, including sexual reassignment surgery, he has yet to make a decision. His journey to start living more fully as a woman will be shown on a new documentary series on E!.

The eight-part, one-hour series will premiere on E! July 26 at 9/8c.