Raegan Revord, the 17-year-old actor best known for playing Missy Cooper on Young Sheldon, has come out as non-binary. In a recent interview with Entertainment Tonight, Revord said they hope to inspire others to embrace their true selves.
Revord, who uses they/them pronouns, changed their pronouns on social media in January but had not publicly discussed their gender identity until now. “It’s so cool because growing up, whenever I would see a celebrity or whoever come out as non-binary or queer or anything, I was like, ‘Oh my God, this is so cool, I see myself in you,’” Revord said. “And now it’s so crazy to have that experience where I’m now that person and there might be a kid somewhere who’s like, ‘Oh my God, I see myself in you.’”
Revord made the announcement while promoting their debut novel, Rules for Fake Girlfriends, a young adult romance published on Tuesday. The book follows Avery Blackwell, a teenager who abandons plans to attend Columbia University to study at her late mother’s alma mater in a seaside town in England. There, she makes a deal with a local girl named Charlie to pretend to be her girlfriend in exchange for help solving a scavenger hunt left by her mother.
In an interview with People, Revord cited the graphic novel series Heartstopper as inspiration. “I love how innocent the love story was,” they said. “Heartstopper was such an accurate representation of found family friend groups, queer youth, and I think it’s so important to have that.” Revord also encouraged aspiring young writers to persevere despite doubts about their age.
