‘Hairspray’ Star Nikki Blonsky Shares Her Coming out Journey
Nikki Blonsky became an instant celebrity through her starring role as Tracy Turnblad in 2007’s Hairspray. Since then, Blonsky has had her own personal journey where she discovered her identity and found freedom to be who she wanted to be. In a new interview, Blonsky shared her coming out journey and the movie that gave her the courage to be herself.
Nikki Blonsky had her first kiss while filming ‘Hairspray’
In an interview with Allison Interview on YouTube, Blonsky talks about how she was a late bloomer regarding her sexuality. She says she never kissed anyone in high school and finally had her first kiss while filming Hairspray. Unfortunately, it wasn’t with Zac Efron.
“I was really late to the game,” Blonsky says. “All of my friends were partying and all of those things. Going dating. I wasn’t. Once I got to high school, I was so hyper focused on getting into an amazing school for theater or conservatory, I was full steam ahead. I hadn’t even kissed a boy when I was in high school. My first kiss was on the set of Hairspray, but no, it wasn’t with Zac Efron.”
1 movie role gave Blonsky the courage to come out
After Hairspray, Nikki Blonsky appeared in a 2013 movie called Geography Club. In the movie, Blonsky played a lesbian, and she found the role to be very freeing. Through this role, she found the courage to be herself and not care about what anyone else thought.
“I auditioned and was offered the role in a movie called, Geography Club about eight years ago,” Blonsky shares. “It was for the role of a lesbian, and this was before I even knew I was one; before I was a practicing lesbian. This character was so out and open and free. I remember feeling so free, because that character was so herself. By me playing her and letting her just be herself and being gay, proud, wearing her goth make up and her leather jacket and her doc martins, she felt so cool. That gave me the freedom to say, ‘You know what. I’m going to dress how I want. I’m going to live how I want, and I’m not going to care anymore if there are paparazzi at the airport or TMZ catch me in my leggings and my hoodie.’”
Blonsky says she didn’t officially come out as gay until she was 30. She says the main reason is that she wasn’t entirely sure about who she was until then.
“When people ask me, ‘How did you know it was the right time to come out?’ I say, ‘Everybody is different.’” Blonsky explains. “I have a friend from middle school that came out at the age of 12. I came out at 30. It’s different for everybody. Everyone has different circumstances, whether it be religious, family, or fear of acceptance. I always knew I was different, but I thought that was the actor side of me. For me, it was a process of growing up and learning about myself.”
Blonsky met her girlfriend through Cameo
Along with her journey being unique, Blonsky met her girlfriend through intriguing circumstances. The actor says she met her girlfriend, Haley, after she purchased a Cameo. Cameo is an app that allows fans to purchase a greeting or message from a celebrity they can share with others. After completing the cameo, Blonsky knew she wanted to keep talking with Haley.
“It started, I believe, on Cameo,” Blonsky admits. “I was doing a live Cameo that Hailey had purchased, and we spoke live, face-to-face. After we got off, I thought, ‘Wow. That is just a gorgeous human.’ I was taken by their beauty, and then I remember seeing them on Tik Tok. I went into my inbox, and Hailey had slid into my DMs. I thought, ‘Yes! Best DM slide ever,’ and I obviously thought, ‘Oh My Gosh. Hi!’ I had been thinking about them ever since that call, so that is kind of how we met. I invited Hailey to come out and visit me in LA, and we’ve been together ever since. We are about to celebrate six months.”
