Colton Unrwood Com Out As Gay: 'Bachelor' Star Tells All on 'GMA' - Variety

Contents:

• THERE’S ALREADY BEEN A GAY ‘BACHELOR’-TYPE SHOW, AND IT WAS ESRTED OFF AIR AFTER JT ONE SEASON
• COLTON UNRWOOD, THE FIRST GAY ‘BACHELOR,’ CONONTS HIS CONTROVERSIAL COMG OUT
• COLTON UNRWOOD, FIRST ‘BACHELOR’ STAR TO E OUT AS GAY, SAYS HE WAS BLACKMAILED
• ‘BACHELOR’ FANS MAND GAY SEASON AMID COLTON UNRWOOD’S G OUT
• THERE’S ALREADY BEEN A GAY ‘BACHELOR’-TYPE SHOW, AND IT WAS ESRTED OFF AIR AFTER JT ONE SEASON
• BACHELOR ALUM COLTON UNRWOOD COM OUT AS GAY ON GMA: ‘I RAN FROM MYSELF FOR A LONG TIME’ (WATCH)
• IT’S TIME FOR AN ACTUALLY GAY SEASON OF THE BACHELOR ALREADY
• FANS WANT A GAY 'BACHELOR' SEASON WH COLTON UNRWOOD, BUT 'S NOT THE RIGHT MOVE. HERE'S WHY
• ‘BACHELOR’ STAR COLTON UNRWOOD REVEALS HE’S GAY EMOTNAL ‘GMA’ INTERVIEW
• THERE’S A NEW GAY BACHELOR SHOW: GET THE DETAILS ON LANCE BASS’ ‘FDG PRCE CHARMG’!

THERE’S ALREADY BEEN A GAY ‘BACHELOR’-TYPE SHOW, AND IT WAS ESRTED OFF AIR AFTER JT ONE SEASON

In realy, there’s already been a gay “Bachelor”-type show — “Fdg Prce Charmg.

”Thirteen gay men moved to a mansn to try to w the affectns of a handsome eligible bachelor, terr signer Robert Sepuvelda Jr.

COLTON UNRWOOD, THE FIRST GAY ‘BACHELOR,’ CONONTS HIS CONTROVERSIAL COMG OUT

Former ‘NSYNCer Lance Bass played the Chris Harrison-que Read: Billy Eichner to Colton Unrwood 2019: 'Maybe You're the First Gay Bachelor and We Don't Even Know' (Vio)In the end, Sepulveda chose hairstylist Eric Leonardos as his guy.

“Fdg Prce Charmg” was not whout ntroversy, though, but not for s gay filmg and jt prr to s premiere, reports emerged that Sepulveda had prevly been a sex worker.

” Unrwood has been filmg a realy TV seri for Netflix about his journey g out as a gay origal story There’s Already Been a Gay ‘Bachelor’-Type Show, and It Was Esrted Off Air After Jt One Season At TheWrap. Colton Unrwood didn’t plan on ever tellg the world that he was gay. “I’ll jt say , ” Unrwood reveals on a recent afternoon, still adjtg to his new life as an openly gay man.

COLTON UNRWOOD, FIRST ‘BACHELOR’ STAR TO E OUT AS GAY, SAYS HE WAS BLACKMAILED

Acrdg to him, last year, while livg Los Angel, he secretly vised a spa known for terg to gay clientele. At one time, g out of the closet was emed a reer killer, but shows like “The Real World, ” “Survivor” and the origal “Queer Eye for the Straight Guy, ” now rebooted on Netflix, led to a profound, posive transformatn how gay people are perceived, and helped brg about progrsive chang to LGBTQ civil rights. As new generatns of lennials and Gen Zers have grown up wh LGBTQ iends and role mols, gay Amerins have attaed the right to marry, and queerns has bee more mastream media, as proven shows like HBO’s high school h “Euphoria” and sentially half of the characters the Ryan Murphy universe.

A gay “Bachelor, ” though?

His announcement that he was gay cid wh news that he was filmg a Netflix realy show about his new life.

‘BACHELOR’ FANS MAND GAY SEASON AMID COLTON UNRWOOD’S G OUT

And others legimately argued that as a hunky whe gay man, he was benefg om privilege, takg a platform that other members of the queer muny served more than he did.

THERE’S ALREADY BEEN A GAY ‘BACHELOR’-TYPE SHOW, AND IT WAS ESRTED OFF AIR AFTER JT ONE SEASON

“If you’re gay, be gay! “I had never seen a football player that had ma to the NFL that had been gay, growg up Catholic. “I’ve had hundreds of gay Christian men and women who are nfed their walk wh J say, ‘I felt closer to God when I me out.

“I never want people to thk that I’m g out to change the narrative, or to bsh over and not take rponsibily for my actns, and now that I have this gay life that I don’t have to addrs my past as a straight man, ” Unrwood says. Cled to ment for this story, or answer qutns about whether there have been discsns about velopg a gay season of “The Bachelor.

BACHELOR ALUM COLTON UNRWOOD COM OUT AS GAY ON GMA: ‘I RAN FROM MYSELF FOR A LONG TIME’ (WATCH)

Realy TV has the power to change mds, showsg unrreprented muni to sectns of the untry who might not e across gay, bisexual or transgenr people their everyday liv. The number of high-profile gay love stori at the movi — among them, the Hulu romantic edy “Happit Season” and 2017 Sundance darlg “Call Me by Your Name” — remas small.

It’s rare to see a full-fledged gay love story, or hts of gay romance, on a realy TV show. When Lance Bass, who is openly gay, appeared on the program 2008, he was paired wh a female partner. Unrwood’s faced mons as a closeted gay man.

IT’S TIME FOR AN ACTUALLY GAY SEASON OF THE BACHELOR ALREADY

For Unrwood, growg up Washgton, Ill., wh a populatn of 15, 000, there were no gay role mols. “We had one gay person my entire town, ” Unrwood says.

Though he felt that he was different at the age of 6, Unrwood never got the chance to teract wh gay people. “I would have done anythg to see a gay football player, ” he says, gettg choked up.

FANS WANT A GAY 'BACHELOR' SEASON WH COLTON UNRWOOD, BUT 'S NOT THE RIGHT MOVE. HERE'S WHY

He ed a iend’s Blockbter rd to rent the movie, so that no one his fay would spect him of beg gay.

“Gay porn was sort of what I gravated towards, ” Unrwood adms, clenchg his jaw. At the time, Unrwood nied beg gay to his father.

‘BACHELOR’ STAR COLTON UNRWOOD REVEALS HE’S GAY EMOTNAL ‘GMA’ INTERVIEW

He remembers that when Michael Sam beme the first openly gay player drafted by the NFL 2014, no one the locker room supported the ia. Their homophobia only drove him eper to the closet. “Growg up sports, I was tght that gay is wrong and gay is bad and football players are not gay, ” Unrwood says.

“By the time I realized that I was gay, I didn’t want to be gay. ’” Unrwood says of his gay enunters.

But producers have ma sure not to jt foc on whe privileged gay men.

THERE’S A NEW GAY BACHELOR SHOW: GET THE DETAILS ON LANCE BASS’ ‘FDG PRCE CHARMG’!

In the seri, Unrwood will explore his posn of privilege, partly thanks to Kenworthy, who is featured by his si as someone who n relate to Unrwood’s experience, as a gay athlete who me out the spotlight.