Katy O'Brian realized her sexuality thanks to seafood: ‘More into this shellfish than I am into this guy'

You've heard of muscle mommies, now get ready for mussel mommies.

Out Star Wars and Marvel actor Katy O'Brian might just fit into that category. The martial artist recently opened up about her personal journey figuring out her sexuality, including some of the eye-opening dates she went on along the way. While she always came from a "really accepting family," O'Brian said it wasn't until she was older that she was exposed to the idea of being queer.

“It wasn’t until college when I saw someone who was very androgynous for the first time where I had this, aha moment of, ‘Oh my god, that person is beautiful. I want to know more about them. Who is that? What is this?’" O'Brian told PRIDE.com as one of its Grand Marshals for Pride Month. "That’s where I started to really delve into my own sexuality.”

The real "tipping point" for the Love Lies Bleedingactor was when she went on a date with a man at a seafood restaurant. She realized throughout their dinner that her plate of mussels — which looked a lot like a certain female body part — were more appealing to her than the man she was talking to.

“The tipping point for me was when this guy took me out on a date and we went to get mussels, the shellfish, and I was [like], ‘I’m kind of more into this shellfish than I am into this guy,” she said, laughing. “I was always really interested in an emotional or maybe even just bro-y connection with my guy friends. I felt very close to them. But in terms of attraction, it was really not happening.”

Years later, O'Brian has happily settled into her queer identity, saying now that the things that "give me confidence are the things that some people seem to police."

“I love having short hair. It feels great on me. It feels like the way that I feel the most confident," she said. "I love having muscles; it makes me feel really confident. I love what my body can do. It’s just one of those things where I don’t think I would be as far as I am if I didn’t embrace those things about myself. If other people don’t want to, then that’s their problem.”