Iceman, one of Marvel's original X-Men, will come out as gay

Iceman, one of the original X-Men, admits he is gay in an comic book debuting in stores this week.

In a statement to ABC News, Brian Michael Bendis, the writer of "All-New X-Men" #40, said, "There are thousands if not millions of stories of people who, for many different reasons, felt the need to hide their sexuality. The X-Men, with the conceit of time travel, give us a fascinating platform in which to examine such personal journeys. This is just the first little chapter of a much larger story that will be told.”

The series features the "X-Men" back as teens displaced in time. In a crucial scene in the book, telepathic Jean Grey is talking with her friend Iceman, also known as Bobby Drake. She says, "Bobby ... You're gay."

Bendis told The Huffington Post that Iceman's storyline will continue to evolve in future books, and that the decision to make the character a gay man was in keeping with contemporary social dialogue around lesbian, gay, bisexual and transgender issues.

This story was originally published April 22, 2015 at 9:20 AM with the headline "Iceman, one of Marvel's original X-Men, will come out as gay."