10 Disney Channel Stars Who Have Come Out as LGBTQ+

Since their run on Disney ended, many stars have admitted that they felt obligated to cover part of themselves, particularly in the event that they had been a member of the LGBTQ+ group. However within the years that adopted, these queer stars have all opened up about their sexuality and have been welcomed with open arms by lots of their followers.

Discover out what these stars mentioned about their popping out expertise…

Miley Cyrus got here out as pansexual in 2015, sharing that she was “open to each single factor that’s consenting and would not contain an animal and everyone seems to be of age.” Miley later opened up in regards to the second she knew she was pansexual, explaining that she had all the time “hated the phrase ‘bisexual’” and didn’t find out about pansexuality till taking a visit to the LGBTQ middle in L.A.

“I went to the LGBTQ middle right here in L.A., and I began listening to these tales. I noticed one human particularly who didn’t establish as male or feminine. Taking a look at them, they had been each: lovely and attractive and difficult however susceptible and female however masculine. And I associated to that particular person greater than I associated to anybody in my life,” she informed Selection. “As soon as I understood my gender extra, which was unassigned, then I understood my sexuality extra. I used to be like, ‘Oh — that’s why I don’t really feel straight and I don’t really feel homosexual. It’s as a result of I’m not.’”

Wanting again on her childhood, Demi Lovato says that she was very “closeted off” whereas  rising up within the public eye. Demi defined any attraction they felt in the direction of a feminine, they needed to “shut it down” earlier than they even let themselves course of their ideas. Over time, Demi finally realized that she was open to courting every kind of individuals and considers herself pansexual.

“I’m so fluid now — and part of the rationale why I’m so fluid is as a result of I used to be tremendous closeted off…yeah, (I’m) pansexual. I heard somebody name the LGBTQIA+ group the ‘alphabet mafia,’ and I used to be like, ‘That’s it. That’s what I’m going with,” Demi mentioned on The Joe Rogan Expertise.

In 2016, a number of years after her Disney Channel present ended, Bella Thorne got here out as bisexual. Within the years that adopted, she says she realized she associated extra to being pansexual however hadn’t beforehand actually understood what that meant till somebody totally defined it to her.

“I’m truly pansexual, and I didn’t know that. Any person defined to me actually totally what that’s,” she mentioned on Good Morning Americaincluding, “You want beings. You want what you want. Doesn’t must be a lady or a man or a she or he or they or this or that. It’s actually you want persona. You similar to a being.”

Hayley Kiyoko was one of many stars of Disney Channel unique film Lemonade Mouth and made visitor appearances of Wizards of Waverly Place — however didn’t come out till years later. Wanting again, she says she was “very insecure for exposing (herself) as a flaming lesbian” particularly now that she will be able to see that she didn’t “masks” her “lesbian vitality” very properly.

“Particularly being closested presently, anytime I used to be on TV, I used to be very involved and anxious that individuals would know that I used to be homosexual,” Hayley informed them, including of her Lemonade Mouth function, “This character is saying, ‘Be heard, be robust, be proud’ and on the time, I wasn’t that. So it’s actually cool to look again and see that my character on this film was virtually like foreshadowing my future self.”

Raven-Symoné didn’t come out as homosexual for a few years after That’s So Raven ended. Whereas she understood her sexual orientation from the time she was a younger teenager, she admitted that she thought she was by no means going to have the ability to come out due to her profession. When she later determined to retire from the leisure business round 2013, she felt secure sufficient to publicly come out as a lesbian.

Whereas she didn’t find yourself retiring, her followers had been extremely receptive to her sexuality and by the point she began engaged on the That’s So Raven reboot, Disney even steered making her character queer. Raven finally turned them down.

“I believe Disney wished her to be queer to start with and I simply didn’t really feel snug doing that. They had been like, ‘Would you like Raven to be homosexual?’ I mentioned, ‘Why?’ (they usually mentioned,) ‘Since you are.’ I mentioned, ‘Unhealthy, unhealthy cause. That is a nasty cause,’” Raven informed them. “No, Raven Baxter by no means exhibited any sort of sexual identification scenario within the priors. I’m not being myself on this present, I’m being a personality. Raven Baxter’s not homosexual.”

Rowan Blanchard was nonetheless starring on Woman Meets World when she got here out as queer in a put up on social media. Whereas she admitted on the time that it was “positively scary” sharing one thing so private, she labored to brush off the unfavorable response from some followers.

“In my life—solely ever appreciated boys. Nonetheless I personally do not wanna label myself as straight, homosexual or whateva so I’m not gonna give myself labels to stay with—simply current;),” Rowan sharedlater including“Sure, (I’m) open to liking any gender in future is why I establish as queer.”

When Josie Totah was somewhat woman, she appeared on the Disney sequence Jessie the place she portrayed Stuart. Though many individuals assumed she was homosexual rising up, it wasn’t till 2018 that she got here out as a trangender girl. In a candid essay, Josie shared her reality, which was totally different than what many individuals had believed.

“I let myself be shoved right into a field: ‘J.J. Totah, homosexual boy.’ After I was actually younger, rising up in a small city in Northern California, folks would simply assume I used to be homosexual…Then I discovered myself taking part in that function as soon as I bought into the leisure business, and folks stored assuming my identification. Quite a few reporters have requested me in interviews the way it feels to be a younger homosexual man…I virtually felt like I owed it to all people to be that homosexual boy. However that has by no means been the best way I consider myself,” Josie wrote in a bit for Time.

She continued, “Previously, I’ve midway corrected folks by telling them I establish as LGBTQ. I wasn’t able to be extra particular. I used to be afraid I wouldn’t be accepted, that I’d be embarrassed, that the followers who knew me from the time after I acted in a Disney present can be confused. However I noticed over the previous few years that hiding my true self shouldn’t be wholesome…My pronouns are she, her and hers. I establish as feminine, particularly as a transgender feminine. And my title is Josie Totah.”

Camp Rock star Alyson Stoner got here out as queer in a private essay in 2018. On the time, they’d fallen in love with a girl and felt that it was doing her a disservice to cover their relationship any longer. Once they made the choice to return out, they had been informed that there have been dangers — however she moved ahead anyway.

“Some folks within the business warned me that I’d destroy my profession, miss out on attainable jobs, and doubtlessly put my life in peril if I ever got here out. My dream and all I’d labored tirelessly for for the reason that age of 6 was abruptly in danger by my being…true to myself,” Alyson wrote for Teen Vogue.

In the end, Alyson did find yourself getting fired from a kids’s present as a result of executives allegedly felt they had been “unsafe” to be round kids. Regardless of the discrimination, Alyson says it was all price it and the “magnificence far outweighs the hate feedback and demise threats.”

Dove Cameron got here out as queer in 2020, after wrapping her roles on Liv & Maddie in addition to the Descendants franchise. Whereas she wasn’t out throughout her Disney Channel run, Dove later joked that she believed most of her characters had been a part of the LGBTQ+ group. She finally determined to return out after the discharge of her tune “We Belong,” as many followers used it for example of queerbaiting and he or she wished to close that down.

“When the tune got here out, all people bought the concept the tune was an enormous LGBTQ+ anthem tune and I discovered myself on this place the place everybody thought I used to be queerbaiting,” she informed Homosexual Instances. “I went on Instagram Dwell and mentioned ‘Guys, I actually wanted to elucidate one thing to you. Possibly I haven’t mentioned it, however I’m tremendous queer. That is one thing I need to characterize by my music as a result of it is who I’m.’”

In 2023, Jessie star Karan Brar got here out as bisexual in an essay for Teen Vogue. Within the emotional piece, he mirrored on the battle between the “public Karan and personal Karan” and hiding his true self “till cracks began to kind.” Whereas he first opened as much as shut mates who had been very accepting, his world was rocked with the passing of his greatest buddy and co-star Cameron Boyce. It finally pressured him to test into rehab whereas coping with “despair, nervousness, and suicidal ideas.”

“I’d spent years attempting to fastidiously preserve a public facade, and but there I used to be, fulfilling the Disney star rehab prophecy I had been adamant on avoiding. I used to be flooded with a way of failure, however there was no turning again now,” Karan wrote.

Fortunately, he was capable of get the assistance he wanted and now discover his “feelings to be way more manageable.” Whereas he nonetheless likes to “maintain issues near the vest on-line,” he now feels “the hole between who I’m and who I seem like is shrinking.”