Anne Heche on the brutal fallout from her relationship with Ellen

Ellen DeGeneres and Anne Heche pictured together in 1997. Photo / Getty Images

Anne Heche claims she was "patient zero in cancel culture".

The actress, 52, insisted she was "blacklisted" by Hollywood after going public with her romance with Ellen DeGeneres in 1997 and as a result she feels she was the first person to lose her career as a result of her public statements.

She told the New York Post newspaper's Page Six column: "This wasn't a long-term love affair. This was a moment in my life when I was given the glory of being able to stand up for what I believe in and have since I was a kid."

Heche previously admitted she was advised not to take Ellen - from whom she split in 2000 - to the premiere of her movie Volcano, and she's reflected on the tough repercussions of her decision to defy the advice for the sake of "living in loving kindness".

She claimed: "I didn't do a studio picture for 10 years. I was fired from a $10 million picture deal and did not see the light of day in a studio picture."

The 13 minutes actress - who has son Homer, 19, with ex-husband Coleman Laffoon and Atlas, 12, with former partner James Tupper - hailed Harrison Ford, 79, her "hero" for standing by her when it seemed her proposed role Six Days, Seven Nights was about to be axed as a result of her relationship with Ellen.

Ford called her at home one morning, she remembered: "He said, 'Frankly my dear, I don't give a damn who you're sleeping with. We have a romantic comedy to make. Let's make it the best one that's ever happened.'

"That is why Harrison Ford is my hero. To stand behind me at such a time when the force of what I was standing up for could have been toppled."

But despite claiming her relationship derailed her career, Anne is "proud" she helped to instigate change.

She said: "Those repercussions that happened, are to me what has created a part of the change. I'm a part of it. It is a badge of honour."