Ian McKellen Tweets Support for JoJo Siwa's Coming Out; Twitter Users Follow Suit

Sir Ian McKellen tweeted out his support for YouTube star JoJo Siwa after she came out on TikTok and Instagram, prompting legions of others on Twitter to follow suit, Republic World reports.

Retweeting one of Siwa's posts - in which she shows off a shirt her cousin gave her calling her the "Best. Gay. Cousin. Ever." - the openly gay 81-year-old actor commented, "I hope @itsjojosiwa puts aside any negative reaction to her coming-out, at a time when she deserves praise and empathy for taking control of her life in such a public way."

McKellen is known to fans around the world for his roles in the "Lord of the Rings" and "The Hobbit" movies, as well as for his portrayal of super-villain Magneto in the "X-Men" films.

Other Twitter users jumped on the bandwagon, retweeting McKellen's post, which he made on Jan. 28, and adding their own words of support, offering uplifting messages for both Siwa and McKellen.

"One of them said 'a king supporting a queen' while a follower wrote, 'Gandalf just tweeted about JoJo Siwa,' " Republic World reported.

As previously reported at EDGE, Siwa's fans were abuzz with speculation that the 17-year-old singer had come out when she posted a clip at TikTok last month of herself lip-synching along to Lady Gaga's LGBTQ anthem "Born This Way."

Siwa verified the rumors shortly afterwards with a post showing herself with the "Best. Gay. Cousin." T-shirt. The pop star followed up by posting a video in which she talked about her orientation, saying she wasn't willing to label herself, but telling her fans that she had "gotten the most endless amount of love and support" following her coming out message. "I am really, really, happy,"

However, trolls lashed out by "swatting " her house - that is, reporting a false claim to police that a dangerous situation was unfolding at Siwa's home, prompting an intense police response. Siwa discussed that incident as well, in an Instagram video.

"We were at our house and, all of a sudden, there was a whole bunch of police telling us to come outside the house," she recounted. "We went outside, hands up like you have to. The police were saying that somebody had called and made a claim and then all of a sudden paparazzi came around the corner."

Ascribing the swatting to the "paparazzi," Siwa added: "Literally just come ring my doorbell, paparazzi. I'll wave to you from my window."

Have a look at some of the Twitter responses that followed Sir McKellen's supportive tweet.