BACHELOR Colton Underwood shared emotional Instagram post saying “I have a lot to learn, but I’ve come a long way” after coming out as gay on national TV.
The former reality TV star received an outpour of support from fans and other Bachelor Nation celebs.
Read our Colton Underwood live blog for the very latest news and updates…
Colton, 29, made his big comeback to social media a day after revealing to the world that he is gay.
In a heart-warming post, he thanked those who have supported him as he lives authentically.
“i have a lot to learn, but i have come a long way,” he began.
“to the people in my corner, i love you. without you i wouldn’t be here.”
The former Bachelor could be seen posing next to a horse and alongside his massive catch of the day. He also posed next to his Jeep.
In other pictures, he hugged family members – who revealed to The Celeb Report that they fully support him as he lives authentically – and even snapped a few pictures of his dog.
Many Bachelor fans rushed to the comments to further support him.
One person wrote: “Proud of you.”
A second one commented: “welcome to the LGBTQ+ family buddy.”
And a third one shared: “CONGRATULATIONS!!! SO INSPIRING. WELCOME TO THE COMMUNITY.”
Colton’s Instagram return comes a few days after he shocked fans by deleting everything on his Instagram.
Little did Bachelor Nation know was that he was getting ready to come out publicly during an interview with Good Morning America’s Robin Roberts.
“This year has been a lot for a lot of people. It’s probably made a lot of people look in the mirror and confront what they were running from,” he began.
“For me, I’ve run from myself for a long time, and I’ve hated myself for a long time. I’m gay. And I came to terms with that earlier this year. The next step in all of this was letting people know. I’m still nervous, it’s been a journey for sure.”
Colton told Robin that he’s now the “happiest and healthiest” he’s ever been in his life after overcoming a bout of depression.
At one point, he claimed he would’ve rather died than admitted that he was gay. When asked if he had ever harmed himself, Colton replied:
“There was a moment in LA that I woke up where I didn’t think I was going to wake up. I didn’t have the intentions of waking up , and I think for me, that was my wake-up call of ‘this is your life, take back control.’
“Looking beyond that, even just suicidal thoughts, driving my car close to a cliff and thinking ‘if I drive my car off this cliff it’s not that big of a deal…'”
“I don’t feel that anymore,” he declared.
He told Robin that it was true he remained a virgin, and when he was confronted with questions about his virginity, he simply said: “I was a virgin Bachelor because I was gay.”
Following the interview, The Celeb Report revealed that Colton had actually come out to ABC weeks ago and he had chosen Robin specifically to do his interview.
“Colton approached people he now considers friends who he felt comfortable sharing this with but didn’t have a game plan of how he’d come out publicly.
“After many discussions, it was decided Robin Roberts would be the person to best handle this so the arrangements were made.
“Everyone involved on the show has been very supportive of Colton and they are happy he’s in a healthier place,” the insider said.
Robin, 60, has been with her longtime partner, Amber Laign, since 2005.
After the interview, The Celeb Report spotted Colton walking happily, as if a weight had been taken off his shoulders, in New York City.
He has allegedly been filming a documentary for Netflix, where he takes fans of the journey of self-discovery as an out gay man.
However, despite him being in better spirits, he failed to warn his ex Cassie Randolph of his interview.
“She was not made aware in advance that he was going to be on GMA doing a tell-all,” a source told Us Weekly.
“To be honest, she hasn’t really had time to navigate how she feels about it yet.”
The insider added: “Post-breakup was an emotional journey for her and it was painful at times.”
“She has taken a lot of steps to move on in life and has been focused on her well-being and her happiness. She has not been in communication with Colton.”
Colton and Cassie met on season 23 of The Bachelor in 2018.
In the March 2019 finale, he begged Cassie not to quit the show and they ended up dating for more than a year before breaking up for good in May 2020.
While the split was originally believed to be amicable, things got messy when Cassie filed a restraining order against Colton.
Back in September 2020, she accused the former athlete of “stalking” and “tracking her car.”
She was granted a temporary restraining order that forced Colton to stay at least 100 yards away from her, in addition to her car, home, workplace, and school.
She claimed Colton had been harassing and stalking her with text messages, TMZ reported.
He also allegedly planted a tracking device by taping it to the bottom of the back bumper of her car to learn of her whereabouts.
He did, however, apologize to Cassie during the interview, acknowledging that he had fooled her during the relationship, and for how things ended.
