"This is a cringe." The producer of Dancing with the Stars spoke about public figures who hide their same-sex relationships

Popular Ukrainian producer Volodymyr Zavadiuk is one of the few people in the Ukrainian entertainment business who dared to publicly announce that he is gay. According to the creator of such well-known projects as The Voice, Dancing with the Stars, and this year's National Selection for Eurovision, it wasn't a straightforward coming out for him, as his close friends, colleagues, and family already knew about his orientation. However, to do so publicly is a bold and unpopular step in Ukrainian society, so Zavadiuk hoped that his example would inspire other well-known gays and lesbians in Ukraine to speak openly about their preferences in partners.

The producer shared his thoughts on this topic in an interview with Alina Dorotiuk for her YouTube channel of the same name. He did not say which Ukrainian stars hide their involvement in the LGBTQ+ community. However, he hinted, or rather stated directly, that there are many such people.

Zavadiuk admits that he has not shied away from the topic of his membership in the LGBT community for many years. He says that after coming out, both publicly and among his close friends, he felt better and calmer. In addition, according to the celebrity, he sees this as his social mission and responsibility.

"I want to tell people that it's absolutely normal: love is love if it doesn't hurt anyone, gay couples can be very beautiful and completely different. And it doesn't matter if you are super masculine or not, you can be different, and it's cool... Some people say that it's fashionable now. But no, it's not fashionable in our country, unfortunately. It's difficult in our country. For me, it was important to say this so that, in particular, by my example, different people could understand that it is worth taking this step, because then you become free. I want famous people to understand this," Zavadiuk shares her thoughts.

The producer of Dancing with the Stars and The Voice assures us that there are many gays and lesbians in Ukrainian showbiz who are not only silent about their orientation, but also lie to society by pretending to be in love with people of the opposite sex. Zavadiuk doesn't understand this and hopes that someday the situation will change.

"Many of my colleagues who are gay or lesbian pretend that they are not. I'm sorry, but for me it's a bit of a cringe. Either someone is choosing families, someone is getting married, someone is playing some kind of love game, someone is in a relationship... What's the point of all this if it's not true? You are deceiving yourself first of all, you are wasting time. We will all die someday, and it will be great when we die and think that we spent our time in different relationships, but we were ourselves. We didn't cheat on ourselves, we didn't collude with our conscience," the producer said.

Zavadiuk also shared that his family, including his mother, grandmother and aunt, positively received the news of his homosexuality. The producer admitted that he now talks openly about his preferences with his mother, and they can even gossip about his potential boyfriends.

That is why Zavadiuk, having had his own positive experience, advises LGBT people not to be afraid to come out. He understands that young people need time to come to this realization, so he emphasizes: "I'm not saying that it has to be done tomorrow, you have to feel that you are ready and it will happen. In small towns, it's more difficult, it's often dangerous. I agree with that. In our country, it can still be dangerous. It's sometimes scary in Kyiv, too... That's why I want more famous people to talk about it, so that people who are not famous can do it more easily."

Zavadyuk also noted that after he publicly admitted to his homosexuality, no one severed working relations with him or terminated his employment. He commented: "For me, this is an indicator of big, big changes in our country."