Paul Iacono, the 23-year-old actor best
known for starring in MTV's teen comedy The Hard Times of RJ
Berger, has said it took him a long time to feel comfortable
enough to publicly come out gay.
Iacono came out gay last week in an
interview with the Village Voice.
In a video interview with MTV
News, Iacono revealed he came out to family and friends 5 years
ago.
“I've been out with my friends and
family for, you know, like 5 years,” Iacono said. “But coming
out in a public forum like that is inspiring, you know, to myself and
hopefully to other people.”
“I think at the moment we need to
have gay pride, because there are so many people who don't feel as
comfortable as I do, and it's taken me a very long time to get to a
comfortable position about it.”
“I'm gay, it's cool,” he added.
MTV canceled The Hard Times of RJ
Berger after two seasons. The show ended with all-American jock
Max, who endlessly bullied RJ, caught making out with another male
student.
In MTV's upcoming series Kenzie's
Scale, Iacono plays a college student who discovers he's gay
after he and his girlfriend move to New York. The show follows the
pair as they remain friends.