Queer Disney Star Reveals He Was Once Forced to Go to Conversion Therapy

Disney star Matthew Scott Montgomery recently revealed that he was forced to go to “reparative therapy”—which he clarified is “another word for conversion therapy.”

Former Disney stars have talked time and again about their time working with the Disney Channel as children. From Selena Gomez to Miley Cyrus and Demi Lovato to Dove Cameron, much has come to light about the realities of working with Disney.

However, one former child actor spoke out about a traumatizing experience he had during his Disney days that was not actually caused by the Mouse House, rather, it was caused by his parents.

Matthew Scott Montgomery, who was known for his roles in hit Disney shows like Shake It Up, Sonny With A Chance, and So Random had to endure a genuinely barbaric anti-LGBTQ+ treatment when he came out to his “very, very conservative parents.”

Montgomery spoke with fellow former Disney Channel star Christy Carlson Romano on her podcast Vulnerable and opened up about his experiences. Romano is most well known for her role as Kim Possible in the Disney Channel television series of the same name and in Even Stevens.

Per Montgomery, his parents believed that “gay people are the most evil thing that could possibly exist.” He explained that after he came out to his parents, his father organized for him to go to “reparative therapy” which was “just another word for conversion therapy.”

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=2SIpVxrJQkw&ab_channel=ChristyCarlsonRomano

 

Montgomery made it clear that Disney had no idea what was happening at the time. He told Romano: “Disney was always really great to me. Disney had nothing to do with it, it was not their idea.” While this particular experience had nothing to do with Disney’s actions, it still made life quite hard for the young actor.

Montgomery also expressed gratitude for his Disney Channel co-stars Demi Lovato and Hayley Kiyoko, who both helped him realize he didn’t need the therapy.

The actor also acknowledged that being 18, he could have chosen not to go, but as he explained, “In the environment I grew up in, you are taught that you deserve to be punished all the time.”

The Encino-based conversion therapy center was reportedly marketed toward “gay men who wanted to be turned from gay to straight and make it as a straight movie star,” Montgomery added.

Montgomery credited his friends when it came to helping him escape the situation and come into his own as a queer kid—friends who became like family. He gave the example of Hayley Kiyoko. “People like Hayley Kiyoko, a guest star on So Random. She and I became friends, and we bonded. When you find another queer person, you just feel it, you latch onto that person.”

The actor shared some words of comfort and wisdom for anyone who had been through conversion therapy: “There’s nothing wrong with you. There’s not a thing in the world wrong with you. You are loved, you deserve to have a beautiful life that’s carefully curated the way that you deserve in joy and happiness and art, or whatever makes you happy.”

While it’s certainly heartwarming to know that Disney had been supportive of Montgomery, they’ve not had the best track record with supporting their stars, as Alyson Stoner has exposed in their podcast, Dear Hollywood.

This said, credit where it’s due this time around for the Walt Disney Company.