closet door bustdown

Brazilian actor comes out at his film’s premiere, reveals he’s dating his childhood BFF

Photo Credit: Instagram/@jp_accioly

Last week we put the upcoming Brazilian film The First Fallen (original title: Os Primeiros Soldados) on your radar, and now we’ve got another reason to get excited for the feature: Its gorgeous star recently came out as gay—and he and his boyfriend are adorable.

From director Rodrigo de Oliveira, The First Fallen is a moving drama about the first year of the AIDS epidemic in Brazil, focusing on some of the first queer people to contract the disease in the coastal town of Vitoría. Among them is a young biology student named Suzano, played by actor Johnny Massaro.

Best known for his Brazilian television roles—including a villainous turn in the soap Beyond Illusion—The First Fallen represents a major breakthrough for Massaro, delivering a stunning lead performance that anchors the emotional drama.

As Suzano, the 30-year-old has received some of the best reviews of his career. But that’s not the only way The First Fallen has changed his life.

Last fall, when the feature made its world debut Mannheim-Heidelberg International Film Festival, Massaro made the decision to publicly come out as gay.

“I couldn’t talk about this film if I couldn’t speak publicly about my sexuality,” Massaro shared with Brazil’s POPline. The actor said it “it wouldn’t make sense” for him to play a gay character and promote The First Fallen while hiding his true self.

 

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A post shared by @johnnyomassaro

Thankfully, Massaro revealed he’s had plenty of support from his film’s cast and crew, as well as his friends and family.

“It was necessary for me to have patience because, unfortunately, we live in a world that is still very prejudiced.”

But he says that coming out was a “beautiful process” for him, and that having his parents at the premiere was a “very powerful” experience that they were all able to learn from.

Around the time he came out, Massaro also treated us with a “boyfriend reveal” that’s got our hearts a’flutter.

 

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A post shared by João Pedro Accioly (@jp_accioly)

Since early 2021, he’s been dating law professor and poet João Pedro Accioly, and apparently the two go way back!

According to Accioly’s Instagram, they were childhood friends who initially met at a family birthday party at his grandparents’ house way back in 1997. We just checked the math, and that means they’ve been a part of each other’s lives for roughly 25 years now. Awww.

And we’re pleased to report the two haven’t been shy about posting photos and videos of one another on Instagram and we are here for it! For example:

 

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A post shared by João Pedro Accioly (@jp_accioly)

Cheers to the happy couple!

The First Fallen is set to make its U.S. debut this weekend at the Outfest Film Festival, so, if you’re in the Los Angeles area, don’t miss the opportunity to check it out for yourself—or try to catch its virtual screening presentation!

Further release plans have yet to be announced, but Miami-based FiGa Films had picked up the film for distribution, so stay tuned for more details soon.

In the meantime, let’s share some more dreamy photos of Massaro… just because!

 

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A post shared by @johnnyomassaro

 

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A post shared by @johnnyomassaro

 

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A post shared by @johnnyomassaro

 

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A post shared by @johnnyomassaro

 

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A post shared by @johnnyomassaro

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