Heartstopper actor Kit Connor has called for fans to stop speculating online about his sexuality following his breakout role in the Netflix romantic drama.
Connor plays teenage rugby player Nick Nelson in the show, which is based on Alice Oseman's graphic novel of the same name. After Nick strikes up a friendship with fellow school student Charlie Spring (Joe Locke), he begins to develop romantic feelings for Charlie and starts to explore his sexuality as their relationship develops.
Following the show's debut, some fans have begun to speculate on social media about star Connor's own sexuality, but the actor has quickly shut down rumours on Twitter by pointing out that nobody else can try to define who he is.
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"Twitter is so funny man. apparently some people on here know my sexuality better than I do..." he wrote on the platform.
The actor received plenty of support from fans for his statement, with many pointing out that a person's sexuality is nobody else's business to speculate about and that it is wrong to try to define somebody else.
"Let's clear some things up," one fan responded. "Just stop. Kit hasn't explicitly come out about his sexuality, so he's the only person who knows about his sexuality yk (and maybe friends and family). But this idea of trying to cancel people for 'queerbaiting' without evidence... is insane".
Another wrote: "I've been fighting with so many fans about this. You shouldn't have to address anything, it's your right!"
Connor's tweet comes after his co-star Locke shared that he has been targeted by trolls on social media, as he explained that people have been searching for his name alongside words including "ugly".
"Ahhh lovely," he wrote alongside a screenshot of a search result. "Everyone should be entitled to an opinion, but just know we see most of the stuff people post online."
Connor recently revealed that he accidentally made his on-screen mum, Oscar-winning actress Olivia Colman, cry on set while they filmed a crucial scene together.
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"We were reading it through and suddenly Olivia just started crying," he said of the scene in which Nick tells his mum that he is bisexual.
"At first, I was thinking: 'God, she's just really good, I need to step up my game massively here', so I was really worried at that point. I think then other people told me afterwards that it was because it's such a beautifully-written scene and a crucial part in so many people's lives. I think it really touched her."
Heartstopper is streaming on Netflix.
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Reporter & Sub-Editor, Digital Spy Susannah is a freelance writer and sub-editor, specialising in the entertainment industry. She graduated in 2014, with a BA in English and American Literature and Creative Writing, and an MA in Creative Producing. She’s been writing for Digital Spy ever since, after first getting involved through work experience, and has written hundreds of stories for the site on a range of topics, from The Sims to Doctor Who. Susannah has also written for Reveal Magazine. Her special interests are soaps (her Mastermind subject would be 2000s Coronation Street), Marvel and Star Wars. She can also quote far too many lines from Friends and Brooklyn Nine-Nine.
