Kit Connor, the shy boy who rose to fame without being pigeonholed

At 20, Kit Connor has just learned to drive. While this is typical for someone his age, it feels unusual for someone who is the visible face of one of Netflix’s most successful series, Heartstopper. The show — based on the best-selling comic by Alice Oseman — has catapulted Connor to fame. Everything has happened so quickly that some describe his career as “stratospheric,” even though he has spent more than half his life in front of the cameras.

Growing up on film and television sets forced him to mature at a young age, he told Interview magazine, leaving him feeling somewhat out of place at times. “I never went out to parties really,” he admitted. “A lot of my friends and family would be going out on holiday, and I’d be working. That was the only thing that did have a sort of lasting impact. But for the most part, I really loved growing up on film sets.”

Connor grew up in Croydon, a town south of London that lacks any cinematic glamour. His parents worked in advertising, and his two older brothers had no ties to the acting world. Nevertheless, he began his journey as a child actor after attending drama classes to overcome his shyness. What started as an extracurricular activity quickly blossomed into a passion, and before he knew it, he had landed his first significant role at just 9 years old in the Christmas film Get Santa, released in 2014. This was followed by supporting roles in television series like Rocket’s Island and War and Peace, as well as minor appearances in films such as The Guernsey Literary and Potato Peel Pie Society.

In 2019, he experienced another pivotal moment in his career when he portrayed a teenage Elton John in Rocketman, the biopic directed by Dexter Fletcher. This role not only marked a significant opportunity for him, but also allowed him to forge a friendship with the legendary musician, whom he considers a role model. “Elton and David [Furnish, the musician’s husband] are extraordinary parents,” he said in an interview with The Sunday Times. “Their two kids are just brilliant, and I think it’s incredibly impressive they live such a privileged life and have been raised to be humble and grateful young men.”

As part of the cast of Rocketman, he attended the Cannes Film Festival for the first time and, as a teenager, entered a world that was starting to embrace him. Landing the role in Heartstopper gave him with the final push. At just 16 years old, Connor auditioned for the series, which centers around the relationship between two teenagers: Charlie Spring (Joe Locke) and Nick Nelson (Kit Connor), who identify as gay and bisexual, respectively. The first season, released in April 2022, quickly became a global success, ranking among the most-watched show on Netflix in over 50 countries.

Overnight, as often happens to actors touched by Netflix’s magic wand, he became a star. Fashion brands invited him to their shows — Loewe even featured him in its fall-winter campaign — magazines clamored to photograph him for their covers, and his social media following skyrocketed, with 6.2 million followers on Instagram alone. However, with overexposure came the first bitter taste of fame.

In September 2022, after photographs surfaced of the actor walking hand in hand with fellow actress Maia Reficco (who co-stars in his upcoming film A Cuban Girl’s Guide to Tea and Tomorrow), tens of thousands of people accused him on social media of queerbaiting — a marketing technique involving intentional homoeroticism or suggestions of LGBTQ+ themes intended to draw in an LGBTQ+ audience. The controversy was addressed with a brief message from Connor, in which he criticized the attitude of some Heartstopper fans: “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 said in what would be his last post before leaving social media.

In an interview with The Guardian in 2023, Connor reflected on this episode: “I knew that I was a queer man, but I didn’t feel I wanted the world to know. Not because I was ashamed, but because it was private.”

Following that incident, he made a conscious effort to distance himself from the public eye, preserving his privacy and minimizing his exposure outside of red carpets. “Sometimes as an actor, you have to have social media to [promote your work]. But for me, I think I realized that I like to keep my distance a little bit. I also like my privacy. I like my personal space. I like to be able to do things that human beings do. For the most part I can,” he confessed in a candid conversation with Teen Vogue.

The third — and so far final — season of Heartstopper was released on Netflix on October 3. While the first season was seen by many as the antithesis of other teen shows that revolve around drugs and sex, the series has evolved significantly. “We’ve been taking baby steps,” he told The Sunday Times. “Season one, [co-star Joe Locke] would be there making sure that we were comfortable holding hands. And now we’re doing the sex scenes. We shot a lot of footage for them. Not much actually ended up in the show. But we shot the sex scenes for about seven hours!”

New records

Just weeks after the premiere of the third season, Connor reached another notable milestone in his burgeoning career: his Broadway debut. He is now under the direction of Sam Gold, starring in an adaptation of Romeo + Juliet alongside Rachel Zegler, who plays Juliet. Reviews have been mixed, but the production has allowed Connor to showcase a different range of talent, which is precisely what he has expressed a desire for in various interviews. He has made it clear that he does not want to be confined to a specific type of role.

“I want to play roles that are interesting and challenging, whether they’re queer roles or straight roles,” he said in an interview with Vulture.

A fourth season of Heartstopper has not yet been confirmed, but given its reception, it would be surprising if it were canceled. Regardless of what happens, Connor certainly won’t have time to be bored. In the coming months, he has three films slated for release, all currently in post-production.

One of these projects, A Cuban Girl’s Guide to Tea and Tomorrow, is a romantic comedy based on Laura Taylor Namey’s book, which was completed in September 2022, though a theatrical release date has yet to be announced. Additionally, he will star alongside Noah Centineo and Michael Gandolfini in the war drama Warfare, and he will take the lead in the horror film One of Us. With these three projects spanning entirely different genres, it’s clear that Kit Connor is serious about not being pigeonholed.

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