Netflix Star Forced to Come out After Social Media Went After Him

Heartstopper star Kit Connor came out as bisexual on Twitter Monday afternoon, claiming he was “forced” to do so. The 18-year-old actor had been accused of “queerbaiting” on social media after photos of him holding hands with his A Cuban Girl’s Guide to Tea and Tomorrow co-star Maia Reficco surfaced. Connor stars in Heartstopper as a popular rugby player who begins a romantic relationship with a classmate, played by Joe Locke.

“Back for a minute. I’m bi. Congrats for forcing an 18-year-old to out himself. I think some of you missed the point of the show. bye,” Connor wrote on Twitter Monday. It was his first tweet since Sept. 12, when he told fans he was deleting Twitter because he was a “bit bored of it now.”

Heartstopper fans rallied around Connor on Twitter, shocked that he felt forced to come out publicly. Alice Oseman, who created the series and the graphic novel it is based on, also showed support for the actor. “I truly don’t understand how people can watch Heartstopper and then gleefully spend their time speculating about sexualities and judging based on stereotypes,” she wrote. “I hope all those people are embarrassed as F—. Kit you are amazing.”

Heartstopper is a new Netflix series starring Locke as Charlie Spring, a gay student who falls in love with Nick Nelson (Connor), a popular rugby player seated next to Charlie. William Gao stars as Tao Xu, Charlie’s best friend. Tasmin Finney plays their friend Elle Argent, who transferred to a girls’ school after she came out as transgender. Netflix released the first season on April 22 and quickly renewed the show for two more seasons in May.

The series has earned critical acclaim for its LGBT representation and it quickly jumped to Netflix’s Top 10 English series chart. The show is also notable for its happier tone, especially when compared to grittier shows like Euphoria. In an interview with Variety, Connor said it was “beautiful” to show queer characters being happy.

“To have a show where you see queer people being happy and being together and united as a group, I think there’s something really beautiful about that,” Connor explained. “I think that shows like Euphoria that are very queer are still very much sort of adult in many ways because they are very dark and gritty. I think it’s really important to have a show that is just portraying queer love and queer beauty.”

Heartstopper Season 2 is now in production. Jack Barton (The Letter for the King) joined the cast as Nick’s older brother David. Nima Taleghani will star as the teacher Mr. Farouk. Newcomer Leila Khan was cast as Sahar Zahid, who goes to school with Nick and Charlie’s friends. Bradley Riches, who was introduced in Season 1, is playing the all-new character James McEwan.