Demi Lovato has credited the iconic kissing scene in Cruel Intentions with helping her realise she is queer.
During a discussion with Queer Eye's Tan France for National Coming Out Day 2020, the singer said she first knew she was not “just heterosexual” after watching the famous makeout scene between Selma Blair and Sarah Michelle Gellar in the 1999 film.
“It was definitely when I was young and should not have been watching Cruel Intentions but I did and it was that scene where they made out on the park lawn,” Lovato told France.
“I was just like ‘Oh wait a minute — I really like that, I wanna try it.’”
She added: “And then when I was like 17 I did get down with that and that’s when I knew.”
In the film scene, Kathryn Merteuil, played by Gellar, teaches teenager Cecile Caldwell, played by Blair, how to kiss with tongues during a picnic in the park.
The moment that went on to win the actors an MTV Movie Award for Best Kiss.
Lovato, who has previously described her sexuality as “very fluid,” also opened up to France about when she first began telling friends she was queer.
“I pretty much told all of my friends and my older sister when I was 17,” she said.
“They all knew before I brought it to my parents and then to the public. Those were my three phases: Friends, parents, public.”
The “Cool for the Summer” singer added that throughout her career she has written songs about girls that her fans assumed were about boys.
“There were times I wrote songs about girls that my fans thought I wrote about guys,” Lovato said.
“I’m surprised that some of them didn't figure out that some of the songs were for certain people. I was sharing it with the world, yet I wasn't being completely obvious with what I was talking about. Music was my safe space.”
Earlier this year, Lovato described the moment she first came out to her parents as “sexually fluid”.
The “Confident” singer shared her coming out story with Andy Cohen on the Radio Andy SiriusXM show, saying: “I didn't officially tell my parents that I saw myself ending up possibly with a woman until 2017.
“It was actually emotional, but really beautiful. After everything was done, I was like shaking and crying. I just felt overwhelmed. I have such incredible parents. They were so supportive.”
In June, Gellar and Blair recreated the famous scene in honour of Blair’s 45th birthday.
The pair got together to celebrate the occasion, with Gellar sharing a photo on Instagram of the pair kissing through a face mask decorated with sparkly lips.
“I got my kiss,” Gellar captioned the post.
