Oliver's Sexuality on 'American Housewife' Continues to Be a Mystery for Fans

Throughout the show's run, American Housewife fans have consistently speculated about Oliver Otto's sexuality. As the middle Otto child and the only son, Oliver starts out as a materialistic, ambitious kid who eventually learns how to act more selflessly. He's also had a consistent friend throughout the show's run, and it's led some fans to wonder whether there's more to that relationship than meets the eye. 

Early on in the series, Oliver's parents actually suspect that their son might be gay. After they discover he and his friend Cooper practicing taking bras off on each other, and then see that his vision board features photos of shirtless men, they suspect that he might be attracted to men. In the episode, Oliver assures them that he isn't and that his vision board is focused on the kind of body he aspires to have one day. 

Oliver also attended ballet school, claiming that it was to help him get a leg up with Harvard admissions. Both he and Cooper eventually wound up with girlfriends during the show's third season, but both characters were later written out of the show. There's even an entire episode focused on Oliver's attempts to prevent Cooper from telling his girlfriend that he loves her. 

Instead, the episode ends with the two of them declaring their love for each other. Of course, the show seems to suggest that it's a bro-mantic kind of love that doesn't carry any romantic connotations. Eventually, the rumor that Oliver is gay becomes widespread in his school after he talks with a closeted football player on a teen hotline. 

When the rumor that Oliver and Cooper are dating gets out, both characters decide to lean into it because they think making Oliver a "minority" might help with his college application. When Oliver's ex-girlfriend and sister hear the rumor, neither one of them is surprised. All of that suggests that the characters in the show have speculated about his sexuality just as much as fans have. 

None of this is definitive evidence of Oliver's sexuality, but some fans are convinced that the topic is brought up so frequently because the show is eventually going to make a statement about it.

"The fact that they've brought up his sexuality so many times this season alone makes me think they're going somewhere with this," one user wrote on Reddit. 

Some fans have also wondered whether Oliver may not be gay, but instead might be bi. He has shown genuine interest in women at various points over the course of the show, and like many teenagers, he may still be figuring out exactly how he feels about his own love life. 

Whatever American Housewife ends up doing with Oliver, it's safe to say that most of the show's fans will be behind the decision. Given the amount of speculation that's already propagated online, it seems that the show has been successful in at least making fans think about this question.