Heartstopper star Kit Connor hit pause on his self-imposed Twitter exile to come out as bisexual to his followers on Monday evening: “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.”
Last month, Connor announced he was deleting the Twitter app after being accused of ‘queerbaiting,’ a term used to describe the “practice of implying non-heterosexual relationships or attraction to engage or attract an LGBTQ+ audience or otherwise generate interest without ever actually depicting such relationships or sexual interactions.β
The actor had reportedly been seen and holding hands with his A Cuban Girlβs Guide to Tea and Tomorrow co-star Maia Reficco in Paris. Since the huge success of Heartstopper, where Connor plays bisexual high school jock Nick Nelson, Connor had been plagued with pressure to reveal his sexuality. Fed up with the attacks, he tweeted “this is a silly silly app. bit bored of it now, deleting twitter.”
https://twitter.com/kit_connor/status/1569277820702171136
This came after months of public conjecture about Connor’s sexuality, which he made an effort to keep to himself since it’s really no one’s business. Let’s remember this is an 18-year-old. In early May, he rightfully began to express his increasing lack of patience with the online trolls writing, “twitter is so funny man. apparently some people on here know my sexuality better than I do…”
https://twitter.com/kit_connor/status/1521245416901296128
Alice Oseman, who created Heartstopper, tweeted her support for Connor and clapped back at folks who “gleefully spend their time speculating about sexualities and judging based on stereotypes.” She signed off writing, “I hope all those people are embarrassed as F*CK. Kit you are amazing.”
Patrick Walters, executive producer for Heartstopper, responded with three heart emojis, as more support on Twitter followed:
I truly don't understand how people can watch Heartstopper and then gleefully spend their time speculating about sexualities and judging based on stereotypes. I hope all those people are embarrassed as FUCK. Kit you are amazing π
— Alice Oseman Updates (@AliceOseman) October 31, 2022
β€οΈβ€οΈβ€οΈ
— Patrick Walters (@patwalterstv) October 31, 2022
No actor should be forced into this position, and when it's done by a fandom that pretends to righteousness about whether someone should be allowed to play a role or talk in certain terms, it is no less toxic. https://t.co/1Dq9wZ02qf
— Mark Harris (@MarkHarrisNYC) October 31, 2022
i love u kit im sorry this has been so disgustingly rough on you. been treated so unfairly.
β kizzy edgell (@kizzy_edgell) October 31, 2022
i hope those people will feel embarrassed for the rest of their lives because they so deserve it. kit is one of the sweetest people to ever exist and deserves the whole world and most certainly not this
β adamππ» (@springstan06) October 31, 2022
β sophia (@pinkthepigeon) October 31, 2022
You guys forgot about this very important part from the comics and definitely didn’t understand the hole point of Nick’s character. You are amazing and I’m really you have go through all of this π pic.twitter.com/lJfHkyqN7P
β ππππππ (@Fran_SOS_1D) October 31, 2022
Based on the young adult graphic novel series by Oseman of the same name (more than 6 million copies sold worldwide), the TV series Heartstopper captured the hearts of millions with its tender depiction of budding same-sex relationships. The show has already been green lit for two more seasons.
What happened to us being about inclusivity and acceptance? What happened to us not being about gatekeeping. The only time we should ever say something about someone being in a role is when they are someone who is trying to harm our community. Yes we should ask for more out queen actors to be chosen for roles but that shouldn’t be at the cost of forcing actors to out themselves, belittling allies who take roles as queer characters because they look the part, or telling an actor they aren’t (pick your queer culture soapbox to die on) enough because they don’t fit your definition. Pride is about remembering how far we have come and continuing our fight for equality not just for members of the LGBTQ+ community but also for every minority community.
Kit is an incredible actor and did an amazing job in Heartstopper! I agree that he should live his life on his own terms. Unfortunately when youβre in the public eye, you donβt always get to. Some fans feel like you owe them something. π«€
Such a shame that he was forced to feel like he needed to do this. On the “Bright” side….I hope he gets to live life n his own terms, needs and wants from now on.
I don’t know him but I am very proud of him.
Always be yourself……especially to yourself.