The world cannot get enough of Heated Rivalry right now, so of course, when Johnny Weir appeared on Watch What Happens Live to talk about The Traitors, he got asked a question about the steamy hockey romance.
Yes, Heated Rivalry is about hockey players, and Johnny is a figure skater. They aren’t the same sport, but they have enough in common that a viewer asked Johnny if he ever experienced a closeted romance like Ilya and Shayne’s. His answer was pretty eye-opening.
Johnny Weir was asked a Heated Rivalry question on WWHL
If you weren’t aware, Johnny came out as gay in 2011, years after he appeared at the Olympics and just before he retired from figure skating. With that in mind, a fan wanted to know if he had any experiences with closeted athletes.
“I wish I could just throw a name at you,” Johnny began, before delivering the poignant answer that the question deserved.
“[Heated Rivalry] was so special and impactful to see because figure skating has a reputation for being very sparkly and very gay, but generally we have to keep it behind closed doors as well because you want people to judge what you’re doing on the ice more than who you are.”
Johnny also pointed out that figure skating judges typically skew older. That can make it even trickier for athletes to live their truth. It’s a journey that Johnny appreciated seeing on television, beyond just the surface-level steamy moments people are drooling over.
“I was just so thankful that they made that show,” Johnny said.
Johnny gave a great answer, but of course, host Andy Cohen refused to let him get away without circling back to the original question. Has he ever hooked up with a closeted athlete?
“I certainly had my moments,” Johnny finally confessed.
The Traitors is streaming on Peacock, with new episodes dropping on Thursdays at 9/8c.
TELL US – ARE YOU ENJOYING SEEING JOHNNY WEIR ON THE TRAITORS? WHAT ARE YOUR THOUGHTS ON HIS ANSWER TO THE HEATED RIVALRY QUESTION?
