Thomas Weatherall is an actor and playwright who is known for portraying the queer character of Malakai in the Netflix series ‘Heartbreak High’.
The 23-year-old Kamilaroi actor has been acting professionally since he graduated from high school in 2017. In a recent interview with ELLE, Weatherall opened up about feeling alone in high school, and how ‘Heartbreak High’ can make viewers realize that they are actually not.
“[Heartbreak High] is a good example to show kids that they’re not on their own. I know I felt like it in high school, you can feel like you’re the only person going through that particular experience,” he shared.
The actor continued,
“But when you get out of it and you go to university or anywhere, you realize it’s a shared experience. I hope people can identify with particular characters and see a bit of themselves in them.”
‘Heartbreak High’ SPOILER incoming…
In the series, Weatherall’s character explores his sexuality, being attracted to both boys and girls. In fact, Malakai officially comes out as bisexual in the second season of ‘Heartbreak High’ after Amerie (Ayesha Madon) asks him if he is gay. Thereafter, he hooks up with Rowan, who is portrayed by Sam Rechner.
Aside from the LGBTQ+ representation, Weatherall’s Malakai is a Bundjalung boy, which brings about representation of First Nations Australians.
“I graduated school not that long ago, and even then I think back to the kind of shows I watched… I don’t know in how many—if any—there was a young Indigenous male going through the kind of stuff Malakai does in his storyline,” he told the outlet.
Weatherall further expressed.
“To actually get that experience, and to play that for an audience was a bit surreal. It didn’t dawn on me for a long time and it’s not until someone mentions it where I think, ‘If I got to see that in high school it would have meant a whole lot.'”
Moreover, ‘Heartbreak High’ is available for streaming on Netflix.
Sources: en.wikipedia.org, elle.com.au, popbuzz.com, imdb.com
