Lance Bass has some things to say about the whole Colton Underwood coming out controversy that blew up last week.
On Wednesday, the former Bachelor star announced he was gay during an interview with Robin Roberts on Good Morning America. Hours later, it was reported he was in the middle of filming a Netflix docuseries about his coming out experience with Gus Kenwothy “acting as a guide.”
But not everyone was thrilled by the news…
Sorry Netflix but I’m really not interested in watching Gus Kenworthy explain poppers to Colton Underwood
— Eric (@eric__hahn) April 14, 2021
I'm glad that Colton Underwood finally feels comfortable coming out, but I'm not about to forget he harassed and stalked his ex-girlfriend and she had to take out a restraining order against him.
Him being gay doesn't negate his history of abusing women.
— ella dawson (@brosandprose) April 14, 2021
Sneak peak of Colton Underwood and Gus Kenworthy’s show pic.twitter.com/45ReDKw9dc
— Liam Gareau (@liamgareau) April 14, 2021
So y’all are telling me Colton Underwood comes out and immediately gets a reality show and Gus Kenworthy as a “Gay Guide”, but when I came out I almost lost a relationship with my entire family…interesting.
— Dillon Cullins (@CullinsDillon) April 15, 2021
During an appearance on “The Ben & Ashley I. Almost Famous” podcast, the former *NSYNC star weighed in on the matter.
“He’s definitely gonna get a lot of backlash from the community at first,” Bass said. “Not the majority, but there is a small percentage of the community that’s just gonna not like the fact that he came out this way, that he’s monetizing the experience.”
He also said he can relate to Underwood’s situation because the majority of NSYNC’s fanbase were women.
“90% of my fans were women, and they all thought I was straight,” he explained. “I made my money off women and singing about love and using that market. So me coming out, it was scary… cause now everyone is gonna see me as a liar.”
Bass said that, ultimately, he thinks the docuseries will probably “help the [LGBTQ] community,” but he said Underwood will need to “sit back, listen and learn” if he wants to get it right.
“That’s all you need to do right now, is just listen to the community, listen to everyone around you,” he said. “Educate yourself, and then you’ll naturally find where you belong in this community.”
Listen to the full podcast below.
Graham Gremore is the Features Editor and a Staff Writer at Queerty. Follow him on Twitter @grahamgremore.
Donston
I thought y’all was actually gonna go a couple of days without posting anything about Colton.
Not only was he already filming a show about his “gayness” before publicly “coming out”, he had also already signed a new book deal about his “coming out” struggles. This in and of itself would just be a tacky cash grab. However, it feels particularly icky since he’s just coming off of spending years using being a “straight virgin” as a gimmick and years of trying to find hetero commitment on television. While let’s not forget the restraining order and admittance to stalking, badgering and putting a tracking device on his ex gf’s car. And no, becoming a member of a teenage boy band and then being grown and “coming out” does not compare to all the shit Colton did. And what he did is not typical of everyone who contends with closet pressures, internalized phobias, confusions, fluidity, contradictions or whatever else. Everything he’s done and is still doing reeks of privilege, calculation, clout-chasing and mental health issues.
No one “hates” Colton (at least I don’t), but this desire to automatically uplift and promote him is corny. Thought it looks like Colton and the media are gonna make sure he stays in the forefront.
Prinny
You definitely sound a bit jealous
Donston
Once again, if you don’t have anything to say but someone is “jealous” or being a “bitter queen” don’t bother saying anything. Can y’all at least come up with a halfway decent rebuttal? Because dismissing the laundry list of reasons people are not supporting this dude with “people are jealous”- it’s making y’all come off like children and making it very apparent that you don’t have any real way to defend him and his actions and ultimately don’t care about his actions.
Den
@Prinny:
Though I sometimes object to Donston’s micro-dissection of sexual/affectional preference and gender identity, he is absolutely spot on here; with both his comment on Underwood and his response to you.
MissTerri
Girl, you seem a bit… obsessed.
stan2015
Lance just like Colton most gay men knew you were gay. Just like Colton we were not shocked when you came out. Also you wrote a book about your life. You would not have gotten that deal if you were still claiming to be straight
alterego1980
COMING IN A LITTLE HOT, BUT WHERE’S THE LIE??? THE WHOLE THING IS JUST ICKY & TRASHY. THEY’LL DO ANYTHING TO PROMOTE THAT “ALL-AMERICAN” FACE.
cuteguy
Everyone else makes money these days, why not him? And ppl, especially gays, always complained in the past about straight ppl in the industry making money off of our backs. Why not give it to someone who really is lgbtq? The only way I’d be upset if Colton ended up really being straight and just catfishing us. Otherwise, let him enjoy his newfound freedom and he’s going to need money like we all do. Instead of lifting one of our own, we have bitter queens jealous of his success
Donston
Do y’all have any constructive arguments, anything beyond claiming people are “jealous” or deeming people “bitter queens”? Folks don’t have to kiss people’s ass because they’re “gay”. That’s not a thing, and it’ll never be a thing. And I’m sure it’s not a thing for you if it’s about a white guy you’re attracted to.
Some of these Tweets are corny, problematic and indeed embittered. And it’s not a good look for this site to continue publishing them in “articles”. But there’s nothing wrong with calling out Colton’s obvious privilege. There’s nothing wrong with calling out him automatically using “gayness” for clout, money and opportunity the same way he spent years using being a “straight virgin” and looking for hetero commitment on TV for clout, money and opportunity. There’s nothing wrong with reminding people that just last year he was stalking and harassing his ex gf and placed a tracking device on her car. There’s nothing wrong with pointing out his apparent Conservative politics. Of course, you guys choose to ignore all of that and prefer to fall back on the “jealous” or “bitter queens” diatribe, because you have no way to defend this stuff.
I don’t care about Colton. Let him live his best life or whatever. This is more about privilege, the issues within media, and the issues with identity and “lgbtq” politics and “representation”.
cc423
I’m waiting to see if he is going to be an advocate for young LGBTQ people who face loss of family and friends when they come out… or just an advocate for himself. I’ve got a feeling I know which way he’ll go.
BLAKENOW
Ha the “GAY” media whore herself taking jabs as someone hot how is coming her crown.
Lance you are a TOTAL HYPOCRITE and your jealousy speaks volumes.
Let’s not forget doing DWTS just because you came out. what DOUCHE.
Donston
He was actually mostly defending him. But okay. He also did DWTS a few years after he came out.
Donston
Also, while I have my issues with Lance, he was a part of one of the biggest “bands” from the past 40 years. He didn’t need to “come out” to get a nothing gig on DWTS.
It’s apparent that none of y’all have any real argument. All any of y’all are doing is deflecting or in so many words saying “I don’t care about all the shit Colton has done, because he’s ‘out’ and I think he’s hot”. Just say “I don’t care” instead of the straw grasping y’all keep doing.
lykeitiz
Exactly! And let’s not forget that Lance was the host of “Prince Charming”, the reality dating show that packaged a hooker as a prince. Did he actually say “monetizing the experience” with a straight face?
Cam
Lance said :
““He’s definitely gonna get a lot of backlash from the community at first,” Bass said. “Not the majority, but there is a small percentage of the community that’s just gonna not like the fact that he came out this way, that he’s monetizing the experience.”
_____________________
Except the problem is, gay audiences are already niche, so there is the percentage of the community that will give backlash and won’t watch, then there is the percentage that doesn’t care and won’t watch…….be interesting to see if anything is left because the LGBTQ community wasn’t a fan of this guy in the first place, and now they are the ones that his reality show is being marketed to.
One issue is that they are going to try to set this guy up as the next go to guy for all things LGBTQ. So CNN will have a bigot on discussing Trans issues and they will bring on Colton to represent LGBTQs. Ugh.
Catholicslutbox
“Not the majority, but there is a small percentage of the community that’s just gonna not like the fact that he came out this way, that he’s monetizing the experience.”
Yup.
He’s white, young-ish, and fit.
People will forget about his past like they did for the geriatric politician “daddy” that did more harm than mayonnaise boy.
Heck, people have even forgotten about how Elton said “civil unions are enough.”
Prowelsh56
There are certainly ” other” coming out stories much more worthy of this. How about the life of a kid working on the assembly line, farmers in the Mid West, cops, firefighters, service industry workers…all stories that should be told but are not. There are many heroes working with run away gat teens, the beaten and battered…few times, if any, do I see Queerty or other media outlets that are focused on the LGBTQ community address. Here we have some ” sensationalism.” many in the gay community will lap it up as they do Real Housewives etc.
Joseph1971
I guess my question is why does he get a deal with Netflix, after already being on a reality show with ABC. There is no way that he didn’t know he was gay when he signed on for “The Bachelor”, or rather the “Virgin Bachelor”. Virgin my ass, I hope men who have intimate knowledge and proof of his sexual orientation come out of the closet and prove this guy is an opportunist.
Fahd
Call it privilege, playing the “straight virgin” card or whatever, still Colton’s looks/personality must have drawn an audience — he’s the jock/handsome guy who gets away with things other people wouldn’t get away with. Reminds me of how George W. Bush could become president. There are certainly more worthy coming out stories, but in our system, if you can not draw the viewers, you’re not going to be on GMA, etc.
Colton’s past actions and his decision to ‘monetize his coming out’ have definitely left him open to criticism. Will he be able to win over the naysayers through his heartfelt book or tv series? I doubt it. Even if the media try to make him the gay spokesmodel, he won’t be good at it. He’ll be off the radar screen very soon.
What I do when I don’t approve of a celebrity is I control what I can and don’t buy their book and don’t see their movie/tv show. I do my best to avoid giving them my consumer dollars. I already subscribe to Netflix, so I might watch an episode of the show, but unless there’s a lot of flesh, I probably won’t watch more.
hotflyer99
This here is the very reason why in the LGBTQ Community the term “White GAYS” exist. We need to get away from all of this foolishness because our community is so divided. If Colton needs a so called “Guide” on being gay he has a number of famous people of color in the LGBTQ community to choose from .I am a man of color with a White husband of 17 years and it never sees to amaze us of how segregated our community really is. We as a community need to stop putting these guys on a peddle stool that do not embrace true diversity .Less us not forget AAron Schock we see how that worked out in pictures constantly with other privilege white gays that are cut from the same cloth. We just get tired of seeing these non diverse gays that just because you are attractive you should get a pass and all is fine when really if we put your diversity or the lack thereof in the spotlight they all start looking like our friends over at the LOG Cabin establishment. Unless someone can tell me different Gus Kenworthy is cut from the same cloth as mentioned above. We need to EMBRACE DIVERSITY in our community we have to want and do better!!! Last I checked Rupaul,Leslie Jordan,Billy Porter to name a few would have been a much better “Guide” choice considering these are the fellas that sacrifice so much so long ago to let us live the life we get to live today. So how long do we have to wait until the next headline is Colton and Gus Are Dating??2,3,4 weeks its coming.
amanwithanedge
“This here is the very reason why in the LGBTQ Community the term “White GAYS” exist.”
you’re either a self hating white person or a racist.
Cam
@amanwithanedge
Wow, you really didn’t read his post did you?
phillycap
He did the exact same thing years ago. The exact same thing.
mf12345678
If Lance is talking about monetizing your coming out, I assume that means he didn’t get paid for his exclusive coming out cover story in People Magazine?
dhmonarch89
Richard Maddox will be doing the same thing next year.
Prinny
Do you mean madden? cause richard maddox is dead for over a century now
Joshooeerr
The notion that 90% of boy band fans are women is a bit spurious. The PR wants you to think that. They often do their best to erase the many, many gay fans.
cantstopme
Regarding this line from Lance: “…and then you’ll naturally find where you belong in this community.” – let’s be clear: There is no such thing as a “gay community”…this is a racist hierarchical group of people, in which many White gays think they run the show. If you’re a person of color, especially Black or Asian, you are very much not welcomed into this “community”. Yes it’s clear this attractive White male will discover he belongs at the top of the hierarchy, but this is no community. Periodttt
winemaker
Not to bash Lance Bass but who is he to decide on the Colton Underwood coming out publicly issue? Really , lance Bass’s already made it big and’s made a S**T load of dough as the main guy of N Synch who’s fanbase was mostly women although he is GAY. It this hypocritical or what? Let Colton Underwood have his 15 minutes of fame and financial gain. Really how many of us were in similar situations and we just couldn’t take it anymore and came out, to much less fanfare and many times hostility? BTW, so Colton Underwood had an epiphany, good for him. Now to the commentator who inferred Colton Underwood’s an opportunist, if you’ve got something that people want and if that’s being an ‘opportunist’ there are millions of ‘opportunists’ out there. One more thing, since he was a pro football player and obviously showered with his team mates, are there any nude photos out there? As they say, time will tell
Cam
Actually Lance pointed out that others may feel that way because there was already a petition against the guy.
But it’s ok, We all know this screename, you take every chance you have to attack out of the closet LGBTQ people so no different here.
Dannyzackery
Lance Bass is right. There are a lot of jealous toxic LGBT people who will hate Colton Underwood just because he’s finally making the first gay-themed docu-series.
Cam
The first?
Wow, if you’re going to troll for Netflix at least don’t make your lies so easy to spot.
When we Rise,
Equal,
Gay Cation
Dancing Queen
Ugh – Tiger King
Etc. And those are just the gay themed ones that are series.
Be happy Colton came out and he’s getting his life on the right track, but try not to lie about the reasons.
woodroad34
All I can think about is how Kim Kardashian and that whole clan have monetized being straight…all the while having a sleazy, amoral father as the head of the clan (I’m talking about Robert Kardashian, the attorney for the murderer OJ Simpson)–making themselves billionaires over their big butts, sexual escapades and general vapidity. And then there was “I am Cait”. What’s so wrong about Colton doing this?…nothing, that’s what. Both he and Gus Kenworthy are eye candy, sports figures, realty show actors. They had their predecessors in “Girls who like boys who like boys”, “The A List”, “Gay Army”, “Queer Eye for the Straight Guy”, “There’s Something about Miriam”….ad nauseam
jorgecruz
That awful Lisa Vanderpump dinner show with Lance Bass should be enough to get him kicked out of Hollywood. He literally came out in a People Magazine story and hosted a reality dating show. Being the 5th most talented member of NSync has worn out its welcome and its time for him to retire to Palm Springs. As for Colton whatever, he is boring A.F. and the show will bomb. The best way to watch this Netflix show with Gus Kenworthy will be with the mute button on.
winemaker
Well isn’t this special of Lance Bass. This guy’s got a S**T load of money and at 41 years has it made financially. Let Colton Underwood have his time in the spotlight. Really it’s a big world and there’s room for all of us