‘Heartstopper’ Star Kit Connor Says Accusations Of His Queerbaiting “Missed Point Of Hit Show”
23.07.2023 - 14:31
/ deadline.com
Heartstopper star Kit Connor says he doesn’t want to be defined by the term “queer actor”, after his breakthrough role as bisexual school rugby star Nick Nelson in the Netflix mega-hit.
Connor, along with co-star Joe Locke, has become a star with the arrival of Heartstopper, which premiered on the platform in April 2022 and soon became its fifth most watched English language show, watched for a reported 53million hours worldwide.
But he received accusations of “queerbaiting” (appropriation by straight people of gay culture for kudos) after he was photographed hand in hand with actress Maia Reficco in November last year.
At the time, Connor broke his own retreat from social media to come out to his many followers – a decision he told the Guardian newspaper he now considers “frankly a bit rash” – when he posted:
“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”.
This weekend, the actor told the newspaper that this experience jarred with what he considers the main message of Heartstopper:
“The whole point of the show is that [queerness] is not always so stereotyped. There are so many lines in the show where someone goes: ‘Nick Nelson, he’s the straightest guy in the school. He’s the captain of the rugby team so there’s no way [he’s queer].’ Sometimes you just need to give people space.”
And he revealed that the second season, due to arrive August 3rd amid huge global anticipation, will address his character Nick’s struggles with coming out, “which is important,” he said.
Then he added:
“Although now I know that I’m queer, I personally don’t find it a super defining factor. I wouldn’t want to be defined by ‘queer actor’. I want to play all parts. Hopefully,