Bachelor Colton Underwood Comes Out as Gay on ‘Good Morning America’

Content warning: This article contains mentions of suicidal ideation and self-harm.

Bachelor Colton Underwood has come out as gay in an interview on Good Morning America.

“Obviously, this year’s been a lot for a lot of people,” Colton told Robin Roberts. “And it’s probably made a lot of people look themselves in the mirror and figure out who they are and what they’ve been running from or what they’ve been putting off in their lives. And for me, I’ve ran from myself for a long time. I’ve hated myself for a long time. And I’m gay. And I came to terms with that earlier this year and have been processing it. And the next step in all of this was sort of letting people know.”

He added, “I’m still nervous, but yeah. It’s been a journey for sure.”

Robin Roberts noted that through the nerves she could see Colton’s joy, and he said, “I’m emotional, but I’m emotional in such a good, happy, positive way. I’m, like, the happiest and healthiest I’ve ever been in my life, and that means the world to me.”

Colton said he felt compelled to speak his truth earlier this year, saying, “I got into a place for me in my personal life that was dark and bad, and I can list a bunch of different things, but they’d all be excuses. But I think overall the reason why now is because I got to a place where I didn’t think I was ever going to share this. I would have rather died than say. ‘I’m gay.’ And I think that was sort of my wake-up call.”

Colton also said he had experiences with self-harm, saying, “There was a moment in L.A. that I woke up and I didn’t think I was going to wake up. I didn’t have the intentions of waking up, and I did. And I think, for me, that was my wake-up call, of like, ‘This is your life. Take back control.’ And I think even looking back even beyond that, is like, even just suicidal thoughts and driving my car close to a cliff, like ‘Oh, if this goes off the cliff, it’s not that big of a deal.’ I don’t feel that anymore.”

If you or someone you know is at-risk, call the National Suicide Prevention Lifeline at 800-273-TALK (8255) or text HOME to 741741 to message with a trained crisis counselor from the Crisis Text Line for free.

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