Kit Connor stars in the Netflix series Heartstopper as the bisexual character Nick Nelson and his real-life sexuality became a topic of interest on social media after the show dropped in 2022.
When Kit was just 18, he was forced to come out in a heartbreaking way after he was accused of queerbaiting.
Keep reading to see everything he’s said about his sexuality over the years…
May 2022
Kit had tweeted, “twitter is so funny man. apparently some people on here know my sexuality better than I do…”
While speaking on the Reign with Josh Smith podcast, he was asked about his comments.
“I feel like it’s something very important to sort of make people aware of because I think, especially with a show like Heartstopper… One thing that I found sort of difficult to understand as well, sort of, certain comments made about Joe [Locke] and his appearance, and things like that,” he said. “I don’t understand how you can watch a show like Heartstopper, which is just so joy-filled and sort of positive, and just warm, and then come out of it, after enjoying it, and then come out of it and say something sort of, I don’t know, just mean.”
“I think in regards to my tweet, we’re still all so young, and to start sort of speculating about our sexualities and maybe pressuring us to come out when maybe we’re not ready,” Kit continued. “I mean, for me, I just feel like I’m perfectly confident and comfortable in my sexuality, but I don’t feel the need to really, you know, I’m not too big on labels and things like that. I’m not massive about that, and I don’t feel like I need to label myself, especially not publicly.”
“To be honest, that tweet was sort of slightly calling them out, but it was also just like, I honestly found it a little bit funny how they just make assumptions about… you know, it’s 2022. It feels a bit strange to make assumptions about a person’s sexuality just based on hearing their voice or seeing their appearance,” he adds. “I feel like that’s a very interesting, slightly problematic sort of assumption to make.”
October 2022
In July 2022, Kit painted the rainbow flag on his arm and walked in the London Pride Parade with his co-stars. He later quit Twitter in September amid claims of “queerbaiting.”
In a heartbreaking statement on his Twitter account, Kit said that he felt “forced” to come out, likely due to the queerbaiting claims from trolls on social media.
Kit hadn’t tweeted anything since September 12, when he quit the app, but he returned for his coming out statement on October 31.
“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,” he tweeted.
July 2023
Kit opened up in a British Vogue interview, more than half a year after his coming out.
“It was just a very natural process for me; I didn’t really have an ‘oh, sh*t’ moment. It just became more and more evident,” he shared of coming to terms with his sexuality.
On being bisexual and the stigmas around it, Kit said, “It’s the experience of maybe you’re too straight to be gay and you’re too gay to be straight. So it’s like, ‘Where do I sit?’ But I feel much more secure in myself now.”
“I’m a young man, so I’m already kind of going through certain things, in terms of just life and mental health,” he said about his coming out tweet. “I just needed to let that energy out.”
“I think ‘forced’ isn’t the right word I would use, but I would say that I would have preferred to do it another way,” Kit added. “I also don’t know if I would have ever done it. But at the end of the day I don’t regret it. In many ways it was really empowering.”
Kit also dished on how lucky he is to be a part of a show like Heartstopper, which has had quite an impact on others – he’s even been stopped on the street by other teens and fans, telling him how much he and his character have helped them.
“As an actor, you’re not always so lucky to be able to do a project you feel actually has an impact on people. I feel super lucky to have been able to do it,” he shared. “The idea that you’re having an impact on anyone’s life, especially a stranger, it’s really special.”
August 2023
Kit addressed speculation about his sexuality in an interview with Jonathan Anderson for Interview Magazine.
“I found it very disappointing, especially given my age—although I don’t think that it should be something that is speculated on at any age,” he explained.
“I really wanted to have that boundary. It was my private information and my personal life that I wanted to keep to myself. So I was kind of frustrated with myself that I gave into it. What I learned from that experience is that there are certain things I want to keep private in my life. I’ve also learned that people are always going to have something to say. Even with me coming out, people will still have something to say—whether they believe me or not, whether they suddenly think, ‘Oh, now can he play straight roles?’ But whatever they say, they’re going to say something.”
July 2026
Kit defended including queer sex scenes in the beloved Netflix franchise, arguing that those scenes are an important part of the story.
“It’s a line that you have to walk: ‘How far are we going to take this?’” Kit told The Guardian. “But at the end of the day, it did feel like these two guys are really attracted to each other at the age where they probably would have been doing it.”
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