Culture

“Schitt’s Creek” Alum Comes Out As Bisexual, Combats Stigma Ahead of #BiVisibilityDay


 

Actor Francois Arnaud got a jump on Wednesday’s celebration of Bi Visibility Day by coming out in a series of Instagram posts over the weekend.

The 35-year-old Canadian actor, most widely known for starring in Showtime’s historical drama The Borgias, discussed his sexual orientation for the first time while unpacking bout the myths and stigma surrounding bisexuality, as well as the challenges facing bi men who are currently in opposite-sex relationships. He claimed that these lingering stereotypes make bisexual men feel “invisible” and cause “people to doubt that we even exist.”

Arnaud recalled that he recently had told a story to work friends about a trip he had taken with an ex-girlfriend. As he was recounting the experience, he realized that his audience assumed that because he dated a woman, he must be straight.

“I asked myself — for the ten-thousandth time — how to tell such a story without making it seem like that was the whole story of me,” he said in an Instagram story. “I’m sure many bisexual guys feel the same and end up doing as I did: letting other people’s assumptions of straightness stand uncorrected.”

Afterwards Arnaud asked himself why he would allow his colleagues to assume he was heterosexual rather than correcting their false presumptions. He suggested that such trepidation is because bisexual people still face “stigmas of indecisiveness, infidelity, deception and trendiness,” accused of either faking their sexuality for attention, being greedy fence-sitters, or lying to themselves.

Arnaud went on to say that toxic masculinity keeps many other men in the closet, calling masculinity “a most fragile currency, ready to nose-dive at the first sign of vulnerability or difference.”

“[I]t’s really f***king scary to give up your privilege,” he concluded.

Research shows that these stressors have a major impact on the mental health of bisexual people. While bisexuals make up the largest sector of the LGBTQ+ community, they are more likely than their gay and lesbian counterparts to report depression, anxiety, suicidal ideation, or other mental health issues.

But while Arnaud acknowledged that “labels are frustrating and words imperfect,” he stressed the importance of bi visibility ahead of the September 23 observance. Sometimes referred to as Celebrate Bisexuality Day, the 21-year-old event created by activists Wendy Curry, Michael Page, and Gigi Raven Wilbur “raises bi awareness and challenges bisexual and biromantic erasure,” according to its website.

“I’ve always considered myself bisexual,” he wrote. “Not confused or trying to look edgy. Not disloyal. Not ashamed. Not invisible. Happy #bivisibilityday this Wednesday.”

In addition to playing Cesare Borgia, an Italian mercenary leader said to have inspired Machiavelli’s The Prince, fans of Schitt’s Creek might remember Arnaud from a guest spot as Sebastien Rayne, the scheming ex of David Rose (played by newly anointed Emmy-winner Dan Levy). Rayne travels to the eponymous town in season 3 hoping to score a photoshoot with the recently humiliated Moira (Catherine O’Hara) and leaves empty handed following some sexy espionage on David’s part.

Arnaud, who has been linked to Borgias co-star Holliday Grainger and Alias Grace’s Sarah Gadon in the past, has also appeared in Blindspot, Midnight, Texas, UnREAL, and I Killed My Mother, the latter of which was directed by French-Canadian auteur Xavier Dolan.

Other celebrities who have come out as bisexual this year include Riverdale actress Lili Reinhart, The Voice alum Avery Wilson, Love, Simon author Becky Albertalli, Moana voice actress Auli’i Cravalho, European hockey star Zach Sullivan, Doctor Who actress Pearl Mackie, British gymnast Luke Strong, actress Rosario Dawson, and former Florida gubernatorial candidate Andrew Gillum.

Get the best of what’s queer. Sign up for our weekly newsletter here.



READ NEWS SOURCE

This website uses cookies. By continuing to use this site, you accept our use of cookies.