Michael Johnston Says Playing a Gay Teen Wolf Role Was “Terrifying” During His Coming-Out Journey

Actor Michael Johnston is looking back on a difficult but important part of his journey to understanding his sexuality.

Johnston, who grew up in North Carolina, recently spoke with Cosmopolitan about coming out as gay and how his role as Corey Bryant on Teen Wolf unexpectedly mirrored his own experience.

“I was just in complete and utter denial,” Johnston said, explaining that he began coming out to himself and the people around him while working on the MTV series. Growing up in the South, he said, made the experience especially frightening.

Johnston joined Teen Wolf in 2015, playing Corey Bryant, a gay high school student with the ability to become invisible. Corey eventually began a relationship with Mason Hewitt, played by Khylin Rhambo. Their relationship was presented as a normal part of their lives rather than the central source of conflict in the supernatural drama.

At the time, Johnston was still struggling to accept his own sexuality. He recalled telling his family that the character's sexuality was simply part of the role and insisting that it did not reflect his personal life.

Johnston also remembered having a relative who warned that playing a gay character would somehow influence him. Looking back, he finds the memory ironic because he later came out himself.

Despite the fear he felt at the time, Johnston said his experience on Teen Wolf became especially meaningful because of the response from LGBTQ+ viewers. Fans contacted him to explain how much it meant to see Corey and Mason represented on screen.

“I had no idea how many wonderful messages I would get,” Johnston said. He recalled fans telling him that seeing the characters simply be themselves had given them courage.

Johnston is now starring in Obsession as Bear, a straight man whose disastrous attempt to make his crush fall in love with him leads to a series of bloody and chaotic events. For Johnston, playing a character's sexuality is simply another part of understanding who that person is.

Still, he said he hopes to take on a deliberately queer role in the future.

For now, Johnston can look back on Teen Wolf with a different perspective. What once felt terrifying has become part of a journey that helped him understand himself while also connecting him with viewers who saw something of their own experiences in his character.

And after playing Bear in Obsession, Johnston summed up the contrast between the two roles with a joke: “I’m just glad I’m not heterosexual.”