Kenny O'Neal

Living... out of the closet in a Catholic Chicago neighborhood. His whole family has deeply kept secrets, but it isn’t until he comes out as gay that the rest of them start acting as real as Kenny. 

Profession... high school student. Not the easiest place to explore your sexuality, especially when you come home to a strict Irish Catholic family. But it’s difficult in ways Kenny couldn’t have seen coming.  For example, he’s now the face of the LGBT community at his school and he’s not ready for that pressure. He hasn’t even had his first kiss with a guy! 

Interests… escaping into fantasy to get advice from his stable of mentors, a group of luminaries that includes both Jesus and Tim Gunn. 

Relationship Status...  single and figuring out what that means for a gay kid in the suburbs. He was dating a classmate named Mimi, but when she wanted to have sex, he knew he had to tell her the truth. She doesn’t take it as well as Kenny had hoped – they’re not about to become a modern day Will and Grace.  

Challenge... discovering his true self without alienating the people closest to him. Kenny has always been extremely close to his very Catholic mother and isn’t sure how she’ll react if she finds out he’s gay. But Eileen has a secret too: that her marriage, which looks great on the surface, is falling apart. They’re going to have to support each other to get through this period of transition.  

Personality... charming, funny, and rule-follower. He’s always been the family’s golden child, so to deviate from the norm is terrifying to Kenny. Though he has a lot of internal struggles, he doesn’t let that stop him from taking risks. From asking out a boy to auditioning for a school play, Kenny’s trying a lot of new things. He hasn’t just left the closet; he’s firmly out of his comfort zone.