Miles Heizer isn’t afraid to take risks. The actor, 23, just landed his first fashion deal with the Gap. Their Logo Remix Campaign, features a global cast of talent remixing creative culture on their own through music, acting, comedy, activism or being a strong, self-expressive voice in today’s society.

Heizer does just that by starring in 13 Reasons Why, where he takes on mental health issues head-on.

“I’ve never been a part of something that is dealing with a topic that is not talked about very often, especially in a mainstream high school setting. It’s ironic because it’s something that is going on there all the time,” he told Us Weekly exclusively about his role in 13 Reasons Why. “We’re one of few shows that have portrayed it in a real way, showing teenagers talking how they actually talk and talking about issues that they are dealing with. We all felt a responsibility to make it relatable, to convey a positive message and let kids know this stuff is not OK and that we need to talk about it, so people can get help and talk to each other about these serious issues. We wanted people to be able to find freedom from those issues through talking about it.”

Heizer also revealed that the crew behind the scenes on 13 Reasons Why provided resources on set for the cast to speak to about what their characters going through.

“We would all talk as a group about our own mental health issues, too,” he added. “I think talking with people about things that I’ve felt and relating that to my character, let me come at it in a very real way. I also felt a lot of responsibility to all the young people who are battling mental health issues since there aren’t too many characters who are really open about it.”

As for what’s coming in season 2, Heizer stayed mum about Alex’s fate, but does promise more ground-breaking storylines.

“I will say we took the issues that were present in season 1 and made sure that they are present in season 2,” Heizer said. “We really went head first into all of these things that people thought were taboo and talked about them anyway … if anything, we’re even more open about the taboo topics from season 1 and we dive in deeper.”

The first Logo Remix commercial will air during the Grammy Awards on CBS Sunday, January 28. The clothing is available online now and in select stores globally on January 29.

The first season of 13 Reasons Why is currently streaming on Netflix.