14 celebs we fell in love with in the 2000s who came out as LGBTQ+

We saw the vision, and they delivered!

The 2000s were a wild period for pop culture enthusiasts. Generally speaking, that was a decade for celebrities to experience some of the highest highs and lowest lows of their entire lives and careers… and some of us were there to keep up with them

It's still not entirely safe, even in 2024, for celebrities to come out as queer and/or trans. A few brave souls successfully navigated those weird times and still came out to live in their truth, while other 2000s faves had to wait a bit (or a lot!) longer to live as their most authentic selves. Either way, we love to see the growth and the transformations of some of these iconic celebs who we fell in love with during the 2000s.

Keep scrolling to check out some of our favorite celebs from the 2000s who eventually came out as members of the LGBTQ+ community.

Miley Cyrus

From the Hannah Montana series to the Breakout album, Miley Cyrus had a chokehold on the culture throughout the 2000s. It took a while for her to successfully break free from the Disney Channel image that she had maintained for so many years… but she eventually did, and openly discussed her fluid sexuality.

For us to watch Cyrus snatching her first-ever Grammy Award in 2024 — what a journey it's been!

Ricky Martin

Ricky Martin's "Livin' La Vida Loca," released in 1999, was one of the biggest pop anthems in the world during the turn of the century. Going into the 2000s, Martin continued his successful career as a Puerto Rican pop star with hit songs like "She Bangs," "Nobody Wants to Be Lonely," and "Shake Your Bon-Bon."

In 2010, Martin finally felt comfortable enough to come out as a gay man, and he's now known for discussing his private life without any hang-ups. Now, that's what we call growth!

Niecy Nash

We first fell in love with Niecy Nash in the 2000s while watching her performance as Deputy Raineesha Williams on Reno 911!. Over the years, Nash has reinvented herself several times and proved that she has the range for comedy, drama, and everything else in between.

In the 2020s, Nash is married to her partner Jessica Betts, won an Emmy Award for Outstanding Supporting Actress, and is now landing lead roles on shows like Grotesquerie.

Elliot Page

Elliot Page has come a long way since his breakout role in 2007's Juno, which is when the entire world fell in love with him. In the 2020s, Page came out as a trans man and started moving forward with his transition — a story that he recounts in his recent memoir Pageboy.

While transitioning in his real life, Page was still attached to Netflix's The Umbrella Academy. And yet, the response couldn't have been lovelier — in fact, showrunners ensured that his character also transitioned within the series to reflect the actor's identity. Ugh, we LOVE it.

Sara Ramirez

The 2000s were a glorious time for Grey's Anatomy. In fact, young people continue to re-discover the show via streaming services and also fall in love with the characters and actors featured in it.

Sara Ramirez delivered one of the standout performances on Grey's Anatomy as Callie Torres, who's still one of the longest-running LGBTQ+ characters in TV history. In real life, Ramirez has come out as nonbinary and has preferred they/them pronouns since 2021.

T. R. Knight

T. R. Knight's experience on Grey's Anatomy was unfortunately tainted by a costar who used an antigay slur on set while filming the early seasons of the series with him. Nonetheless, it doesn't change the massive popularity of Knight's character on the show: the adorable and charismatic Dr. George O'Malley. Knight came out while still appearing on Grey's Anatomy, and we loved to see it.

Kristen Stewart

Between Panic Room (2002), Into the Wild (2007), and starting her wild journey with the Twilight franchise (2008), people used to dismiss Kristen Stewart's acting and rolled their eyes at her reported relationship with costar Robert Pattinson.

Thankfully, Stewart made it to the other side of that era, eventually came out as bisexual, and can now deliver performances such as Lou in Love Lies Bleeding. We already saw the vision for K-Stew in the 2000s, and it feels right that she's now a well-established creative force in Hollywood.

Ross Hull

Best known for playing Gary in the Are You Afraid of the Dark? series from Nickelodeon, as well as appearing on TV shows like Stargate: Atlantis and Dark Matter, Ross Hull has become a certified gay hunk over the years.

Raven-Symoné

Raven-Symoné started her long career on The Cosby Show, but it was really her performance on the Disney Channel's That's So Raven — playing the titular character — that turned her into a household name for years to come.

Despite rejecting labels over the years, Raven-Symoné has described herself as someone whose sexuality is fluid. In 2020, she married her wife, Miranda Maday.

Jonathan Bennett

Jonathan Bennett (and how sexy he looked with his hair pushed back) was all the rage when Mean Girls came out in 2004. Given the film's staying power to this day, there are now multiple generations who fell in love with this 2000s version of Bennett and continued to follow his journey as he came out, got married, and starred in new projects.

Daniel Franzese

Unlike Bennett — who played the heartthrob in Mean Girls and only came out later in life — Daniel Franzese's role as the "too gay to function" Damian placed the actor on everyone's gaydar much more quickly. After officially coming out, Franzese even appeared on HBO's Looking, and his OG fans couldn't be happier!

Rajiv Surendra

And who would've guessed it: all three main male actors in the original Mean Girls movie turned out to be gay… including Rajiv Surendra, who played Kevin Gnapoor in the film.

Surendra came out in 2016 and has been focusing his most recent years on creating content and being an influencer. Oh, he's also not shy about sharing thirst traps, and we have ZERO complaints!

Demi Lovato

Demi Lovato was another superstar from the Disney Channel who gained notoriety after starring in 2008's Camp Rock alongside Joe Jonas. As a powerhouse vocalist, Lovato's music career was always prioritized as well — with a total of eight studio albums released by the singer so far.

Lovato, who uses both they/them and she/her pronouns, has referred to herself as nonbinary and as "fluid" when it comes to her sexuality.

Wentworth Miller

Wentworth Miller became an incredibly well-known actor for his lead role as Michael Scofield on Prison Break, which had a very loyal audience throughout the 2000s. Years after the series came to an end, Miller wrote a letter published by GLAAD where he came out as gay.