Joshua Rush on playing gay in Disney show

Joshua Rush —INSTAGRAM

Teen actor Joshua Rush continues to express gratitude for his character, Cyrus, a gay kid in the teen drama “Andi Mack.” The character is the first to say “I’m gay” in a Disney Channel show.

In the story, Cyrus recently came out to his friend Jonah (Asher Angel), who is accepting of his gender identity.

In an interview with “Good Morning America,” Rush said of portraying the self-aware boy, “Cyrus has taught me a lot about being comfortable with myself no matter what others think. I was bullied a lot at Cyrus’ age.”

Fan response has been “overwhelmingly positive,” according to the 17-year-old actor. “Over the last few days, I’ve gotten to see the myriad ways that both this new coming-out scene for Cyrus, and this Jewish representation of his family, have affected the fans,” Rush said.

The former child actor, who appeared in “Heroes” and “Chuck” early in his career, often uploads videos of his take on political headliners, “News in a Rush,” to his Instagram page. —OLIVER PULUMBARIT