MTV Star Comes Out As a Gay Man!

The Hard Times of RJ Berger's Paul Iacono, 23, gets honest. "I think it's the right time to say something," he says in new interview

By Marc Malkin Apr 11, 2012 8:08 PMTags
Paul IaconoDavid Livingston/Getty Images

Congratulations are in order for Paul Iacono, the young star of MTV's The Hard Times of RJ Berger.

The 23-year-old actor came out today as a gay man.

While he may not be the biggest household name (yet)...

Bravo to Iacono for doing what so many gay men and women in Hollywood are reluctant to do themselves.

"I think it's the right time to say something," he says in an interview with Michael Musto, a columnist for the Village Voice newspaper in New York City. "It's not about me, it's about change and the work."

In RJ Berger, Iacono starred as a high schooler with an exceptionally impressive manhood. In his new MTV series, Kenzie's Scale, he's a college student who realizes he's gay after moving to New York with his girlfriend.

"The whole reason we came up with Kenzie's Scale is to give young gays characters to look up to," Iacono said. "It's great that we have Chris Colfer, but we need more characters...I didn't have much to look up to as a kid. I had to search to find like-minded images. I'm happy to be that person so kids won't have to grow up and be afraid of their sexuality and this won't be an issue."

Soon after Musto posted his interview, Iacono tweeted the hashtag #YOLO (which stands for you only live once) along with a message, "Yes I'm gay. And yes, it does get better."

It certainly does—especially when we have people like you to look up to, Mr. Iacono.