Joshua Rush opened up about his sexuality for the first time publicly this week, telling fans that he identifies as a “proud bisexual man.” Best known for playing Cyrus Goodman on the Disney Channel series, “Andi Mack,” the actor on Tuesday joked that the first person to reply to one of his tweets was bisexual.

first to respond to this tweet is bi lol — joshua rush (@JoshuaRush) August 6, 2019

From there, however, things took a more personal turn.

first! i win! it's me. i'm bi. And now that I've said that, I have a few things to rant about. There are more important things to talk about than me liking a whole bunch of genders, but I do want to share a few things with you guys. — joshua rush (@JoshuaRush) August 6, 2019

The 17-year-old Texas native suggested that his initial reluctance to come out was “ironic” given his “Andi Mack” role. As Cyrus Goodman, Rush portrayed the Disney Channel’s first openly gay character. Cyrus first addressed his sexuality in the show’s Season 2 premiere episode, in which he revealed that he’d developed a crush on his best male friend, Jonah (Asher Angel). Later installments saw Cyrus coming to terms with his feelings for other boys, albeit in a suitably adolescent way. Season 3’s “One in a Minyan,” for instance, saw Cyrus come out to Jonah while mourning the death of his grandmother, Bubbe Rose. That episode drew praise from a number of LGBTQ advocacy groups, including PFLAG International, which applauded the Disney Channel for “continuing to tell Cyrus’ story in such an authentic and moving way” for young viewers. The series finale of “Andi Mack,” which aired July 26, went a step further by hinting at a relationship developing between Cyrus and a classmate, TJ Kippen (Luke Mullen).

I saw so many of you watch Cyrus come out and said "Hey! I can be me!"



How ironic, isn't it, that me, playing that character, never had mustered up that courage? — joshua rush (@JoshuaRush) August 6, 2019

But playing Cyrus wasn’t the sole impetus in Rush’s decision to come out. Rather, he said, it was the support of fans ― many of whom felt “emboldened by Cyrus” ― that gave him the courage to live as his authentic self.

Instead of feeling the courage to tell you today that I am an out and proud bisexual man because of the character I played for four years, I feel that courage thinking of all of you, who felt emboldened by Cyrus to come out. — joshua rush (@JoshuaRush) August 6, 2019

I stuffed the existential crisis of talking about my sexual orientation into a box in my mind for years. Today, I release it into the world. — joshua rush (@JoshuaRush) August 6, 2019

Being bi isn't all of my identity, nor is it the most important part of my identity. Bi erasure and issues like it are important, but trans women of color still have a life expectancy of THIRTY FIVE YEARS and that is absolutely unacceptable. — joshua rush (@JoshuaRush) August 6, 2019

The 17-year-old concluded the tweet thread with callouts to two LGBTQ advocacy groups, GLAAD and The Trevor Project. “Helping young LGBTQ+ voices feel heard and loved is utterly crucial,” he said.

Disney Channel via Getty Images Joshua Rush starred on the Disney Channel series "Andi Mack" as Cyrus Goodman, who came out as gay over the course of the show.