“Heartstopper” lead actor Kit Connor, who plays Nick Nelson, came out as bisexual on social media as a result of the pressure he felt from fans speculating about his sexuality after his appearance on the Netflix show.
“Congrats for forcing an 18 year old to out himself,” Connor wrote on Twitter. “I think some of you missed the point of the show.”
Reps for Netflix did not immediately respond to TheWrap’s request for comment. Connor’s reps declined to comment.
Connor’s character Nick leads the series, adapted from Alice Oseman’s graphic novels, alongside Joe Locke’s Charlie Spring. When Nick meets Charlie, who is openly out and gay, he starts to question his own sexuality when the two get closer and develop a tight bond.
Oseman tweeted a response, supporting Connor and mourning how the message of the show did not make it to certain fans.
“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.”
Nick, who plays rugby, is a year above Charlie in school, but the two find themselves drawn to each other after meeting. Soon they become more than friends in the first season of the show, accented by cute cartoon touches that emphasize the first fluttering heart feelings of a new crush.
In an interview with EW, Connor said that once he had read all four volumes of the graphic novel he knew the adaptation was something he wanted to pursue. He originally auditioned for the role of Charlie.
After the first season’s premiere on Netflix in April 2022, the show was renewed for two more seasons in May.
Connor has previously starred in the “His Dark Materials” television series, “Rocketman” (2019) as the older version of Reggie and “The Guernsey Literary and Potato Peel Pie Society” (2018) as Eli Ramsey.