This is a list of comedy television series (including web television and miniseries) which feature lesbian, gay, bisexual, and transgender characters . Non-binary, pansexual, asexual, and graysexual characters are also included. The orientation can be portrayed on-screen, described in the dialogue or mentioned.
Show | Character | Actor | Notes | Network Series run |
---|---|---|---|---|
Byng Ho! Queue For Song | Bawdy but British | Douglas Byng | Douglas Byng was the first female impersonator on UK television. His songs are full of sexual innuendo and double entendres. Byng-Ho! was a comedy sketch show with two episodes. Queue For Song was a variety show featuring comedy and music, with various performers. Byng was openly gay within his own theatrical world, but very discreet outside it. He also starred in music halls, burlesque revues and cabaret. [1] [2] [3] [4] | BBC One 1938–1939 |
Show | Character | Actor | Notes | Network Series run |
---|---|---|---|---|
The Ernie Kovacs Show | Percy Dovetonsils | Ernie Kovacs | Percy Dovetonsils was a wealthy, giddy and lisping effeminate poet. TV reviewers called him a sissy. Percy came closest to saying he was gay in a skit where he began plucking petals from a plastic flower saying, "he loves me, he loves me not..." John Barbour, who produced and narrated a documentary about Kovacs, said the Percy character was "the Alfred E. Neuman of the gay set". [5] [6] [7] | CBS 1952–1954 |
The Ernie Kovacs Show | Rock Mississippi | Ernie Kovacs | In a January 26, 1956, episode, Kovacs basically outed secretly-closeted Rock Hudson, when he played the character Rock Mississippi. Rock was a Hollywood film star who wore long false eyelashes and was swishy and effeminate. Rock was offering a preview of his latest movie, The Umbrella Salesman of Ranchipur. [5] [8] [9] | NBC 1956 |
It's A Great Life | Mrs. Shufflewick | Rex Jameson | Rex Jameson was a female impersonator who created the character Mrs. Shufflewick at a BBC audition. Mrs. Shufflewick was a ruddy, tipsy cockney woman settled in the snug of her local pub, The Cock & Comfort: "a lot of comfort, but not much of anything else". In 1955, he was featured in the TV show It's A Great Life and was voted "TV Personality of the Year" for his performance. He also appeared on TV in other shows from the 1950s-1970s. Jameson was secretly gay, until he was outed in the 1970s. [1] [10] [11] [12] | BBC 1955 |
The Steve Allen Show | Travel Correspondent | Tom Poston | Poston portrayed a TV news travel correspondent doing a report from Scotland, while wearing a kilt. When anchorman Allen asks him about his knees getting cold, Poston replies, no, but they do get a lot of compliments, I haven't paid for a drink since I got here. Poston also relays to Allen that a Duke proposed to him and they were engaged, while primping effeminately. [13] | NBC 1959 |
Show | Character | Actor | Notes | Network Series run |
---|---|---|---|---|
Agony | Michael | Peter Denyer | First British sitcom to feature a gay couple in a non-camp fashion. Michael eventually committed suicide after being outed on a live phone-in radio show. [14] [15] | ITV 1979-1981 |
Rob | Jeremy Bulloch | |||
Alice | Jack Newhouse | Denny Miller | Alice falls for Mel's friend Jack, a gay ex-professional football player. When he comes out to her, Alice is concerned about letting her son go fishing with him. [16] | CBS 1976-1985 |
All in the Family | Steve | Philip Carey | Archie's friend Steve, an ex–professional football player, shocks him by telling him he's gay. [17] [18] | CBS 1971-1979 |
Veronica | K Callan | Veronica was the longtime partner of Edith's cousin Liz. [19] [20] | ||
All That Glitters | Linda Murkland | Linda Gray | Linda Murkland is a transgender woman. The show featured the first regular transgender character on TV. [21] [22] | Syndication 1977 |
Are You Being Served? | Mr. Humphries | John Inman | Humphries is the junior menswear assistant working in the fictional Grace Brothers department store. [23] | BBC1 1972-1985 |
Ball Four | Bill Westlake | David James Carroll | Based on the book Ball Four . Featured a gay rookie baseball player. [24] [25] [26] | CBS 1976 |
Barney Miller | Marty Morrison | Jack DeLeon | Darryl and Marty are openly gay recurring characters, and partners. Series creator Danny Arnold worked with the National Gay Task Force in developing the characters of Darryl and Marty. Initially, both were presented as flamboyantly gay, but as the series progressed Darryl began acting and dressing more conservatively. [27] [28] | ABC 1975-1982 |
Darryl Driscoll | Ray Stewart | |||
Officer Zitelli | Dino Natali | Zitelli comes out to Miller, after someone writes an anonymous letter threatening to reveal that one of the cops is gay. [29] [30] | ||
The Bob Newhart Show | Craig Plager | Howard Hesseman | Craig joins Bob's group therapy and comes out to the group, with mixed reactions from them. [31] | CBS 1972-1978 |
The Corner Bar | Peter Panama | Vincent Schiavelli | The first continuing portrayal of a gay person on American television. [32] | ABC 1972–1973 |
Hot l Baltimore | George Gordon | Lee Bergere Henry Calvert | Middle aged couple living together. One of the first gay couples to be depicted on an American television series. [33] [34] | ABC 1975 |
Hollywood Squares | Paul Lynde | Paul Lynde | Regular member of celebrities on Hollywood Squares. [33] [35] | ABC 1975 |
Mary Hartman, Mary Hartman | Ed McCullough | Laurence Haddon | Ed and Howard were introduced as a pair of brothers sharing a house in the Hartmans' neighborhood but were later revealed to be a gay couple hoping to live an open life in Fernwood. [36] | Syndicated 1976–1977 |
Howard McCullough | Beeson Carroll | |||
The Mary Tyler Moore Show | Ben Sutherland | Robert Moore | Ben is gay and the brother of Phyllis. In "My Brother's Keeper", she tries to set him up with Mary, but he instead hangs out with Rhoda who later tells Phyllis the reason why she's not interested in dating Ben. [37] | CBS 1970–1977 |
Maude | Barry Witherspoon | Robert Mandan | Walter is upset to hear that Maude's new friend, Barry Witherspoon, a local gay novelist, will be stopping by for drinks, feeling that he is a "pompous windbag." [38] [39] | CBS 1972-1978 |
1st man | Craig Richard Nelson | Maude's neighbor Arthur (Conrad Bain), is outraged about a new gay bar in town, so she takes him there to change Arthur's bigoted mind through thoughtful conversation with a young patron (1st man). [40] [41] | ||
The Nancy Walker Show | Terry Folson | Ken Olfson | Terry is an out-of-work actor and personal assistant to lead character Nancy Kitteridge (Nancy Walker). [42] | ABC 1976 |
Porridge | Lukewarm | Christopher Biggins | Lukewarm is an openly gay inmate, he got his nickname from working in the prison kitchen and always preparing tepid food. Porridge is considered to be one of the greatest British sitcoms of all time. [43] [44] [45] | BBC 1974-1977 |
Gay Gordon | Felix Bowness | Gay Gordon is a semi-regular character and worked in the kitchens. One of the episodes he appeared in was "Just Desserts". [44] [46] | ||
Soap | Jodie Dallas | Billy Crystal | Jodie is openly gay, and dated a closeted football player, but later dates a woman. Jodie Dallas is one of the most memorable gay characters from the 70s and played a central role in the series week after week. [47] [48] | ABC 1977–1981 |
Snip | Michael Robert St. James | Walter Wanderman | Michael is an openly gay hairdresser. The show was created by James Komack, the creator of Chico and the Man and Welcome Back Kotter . The series was to premiere September 30, 1976, on NBC, but was shelved at the last minute and was never broadcast in the United States. The five completed episodes aired in Australia. [49] [50] [51] | NBC 1976 |
Show | Character | Actor | Notes | Network Series run |
---|---|---|---|---|
After Henry | Russell Bryant | Jonathan Newth | Russell operated a second-hand bookstore and was a good friend of Sarah France (Prunella Scales), who worked for him. [15] | ITV 1988-1992 |
'Allo 'Allo! | Lt. Hubert Gruber | Guy Siner | Lt. Gruber was seemingly gay, and interested in the series' lead character, Rene Artois (Gorden Kaye). In the series finale's flash-forward scene, however, it was revealed that Gruber eventually married Pvt. Helga Geerhart (Kim Hartman). [52] | BBC 1982–1992 |
Anything but Love | Jules Kramer | Richard Frank | Jules is Norman's (Louis Giambalvo) fawning assistant. [53] | ABC 1989-1992 |
Brass | Morris Hardacre | James Saxon | Morris is a gay college student with a fondness for teddy bears. Morris' character was based on Lord Sebastian Flyte from Brideshead Revisited . [54] | ITV 1982-1984 |
Brothers | Cliff Waters | Paul Regina | On the day of his wedding, Cliff comes out as gay, which does not sit well with his two older brothers, Joe (Robert Walden), an ex-professional football player, and Lou (Brandon Maggart), a conservative working-class man. [55] [56] | Showtime 1984–1989 |
Donald Maltby | Philip Charles MacKenzie | Donald is Cliff's best friend, openly gay, and proud of it. When Cliff's brother Joe calls him a fairy, Donald quips "actually we prefer the term hobgoblin". [55] [56] | ||
Check It Out! | Leslie Rappaport | Aaron Schwartz | Leslie is openly gay, and a cashier at the fictitious supermarket Cobb's. The show is based on the British series Tripper's Day . [57] | CTV USA 1985-1988 |
CODCO | Duncan | Tommy Sexton | Duncan and Jerome are a flamboyant pair of gay lawyers, appearing in a recurring segment called "Queen's Counselors". [58] | CBC TV 1988–1993 |
Jerome | Greg Malone | |||
Daily at Dawn | Leslie Windrush | Terry Bader | Leslie is the gay showbiz and social writer at the metropolitan newspaper, Daily at Dawn. [59] | Seven Network 1981 |
Designing Women | Kendall Dobbs | Tony Goldwyn | A young gay man diagnosed with HIV asks the Sugarbaker firm to design his funeral. | CBS 1986–1993 |
Doctor Doctor | Richard Stratford | Tony Carreiro | Richard is the openly gay brother of lead character Mike Stratford (Matt Frewer). [60] | CBS 1989–1991 |
Dream Stuffing | Richard | Ray Burdis | British sitcom about two unemployed girls who share a London flat. Their neighbor Richard is gay. [61] | Channel 4 1984 |
Hail to the Chief | Randy | Joel Brooks | Randy is a gay secret service agent to the first female U.S. president. [62] | ABC 1985 |
Hooperman | Rick Silardi | Joseph Gian | Police Officer Rick Silardi is openly gay, but seems to spend most of his time fending off the affections of his straight female police partner, Officer Mo DeMott (Sydney Walsh), who wants to save him from being gay by making passes at him whenever possible. [63] [64] | ABC 1987–1989 |
In Sickness and in Health | Winston Churchill | Eamonn Walker | Eamonn, a gay black man, is sent by social services to assist Alf (Archie Bunker in the U.S. version), which infuriates him. [65] | BBC 1985-1992 |
It Takes a Worried Man | Simon | Nicholas Le Prevost | Simon is Phillips (Peter Tilbury) gay analyst, who he sees on a regular basis. Peter Tilbury wrote most of the episodes for this series. [65] | ITV Channel 4 1981-1983 |
The Kids in the Hall | Buddy Cole | Scott Thompson | Recurring sketch on the show; Buddy is an effeminate gay socialite, with a penchant for going on long comedic rants about his personal life and the gay community. [66] | CBC TV CBS HBO 1988-1995 |
Butch | Scott Thompson | Recurring sketch on the show called "Steps"; Three young stereotypical gay men sit on the steps of a café discussing current events, particularly those concerning the gay community. Riley is an effeminate airhead, Butch is an oversexed airhead who always talks about hot men, and Smitty is an intelligent fop who is usually exasperated by the other two. [66] | ||
Riley | Dave Foley | |||
Smitty | Kevin McDonald | |||
Shona | Bruce McCulloch | Recurring sketch on the show; Shona is a loud-mouthed lesbian who appears in the "Humanoids for Humanism" sketches. [66] | ||
Love, Sidney | Sidney Shore | Tony Randall | Sidney is a middle-aged, Jewish, New York homosexual. Although his sexuality is never explicitly mentioned, Tony Randall said that it was undeniable there in every episode, but it wasn't incidental to the plot. One of the conditions for Randall accepting the role was that he be given complete creative control. [67] | NBC 1981–1983 |
Roseanne | Beverly Harris | Estelle Parsons | Roseanne and Jackie's mom. [68] | ABC 1988–1997 |
Leon Carp | Martin Mull | Leon is Roseanne's boss at the diner, and marries his partner Scott. [69] [70] | ||
Scott | Fred Willard | |||
Nancy Bartlett | Sandra Bernhard | After Nancy's marriage to Arnie was over, she came out as a lesbian, and later, as bisexual. [71] [72] | ||
Sara | Dennis Kemper | Bronson Pinchot | Dennis is an openly gay attorney in the law firm at which the series is set. [73] | NBC 1985 |
Thirtysomething | Russell Weller | David Marshall Grant | Russell is a gay friend of Melissa's whom he met while she was photographing a wedding. Russell and Peter Montefiore have a one-night stand. The episode featuring the one night stand with Russell and Peter, titled "Strangers", was the subject of controversy [74] [75] | ABC 1987–1991 |
Peter Montefiore | Peter Frechette | |||
Women in Prison | Bonnie Harper | Antoinette Byron | Bonnie is a flirtatious openly lesbian in an all women's prison. [76] [77] | Fox 1987–1988 |
Show | Character | Actor | Notes | Network Series run |
---|---|---|---|---|
After the Beep | Mae Santos | Genevieve Mooy | Mae is a lesbian, runs a bridal boutique, and is best friend of Josephine Donnelly (Genevieve Lemon). Every episode in the seven-part series starts with a message "after the beep" on Josephine's answering machine. [15] | ABC TV 1996 |
Agony Again | Michael Lucas | Sacha Grunpeter | Michael is a gay college student, who meets Will Brewer (Robert Whitson), the star of an Australian soap opera. Short-lived sequel to 1979 sitcom Agony. [15] | BBC 1995 |
Ally McBeal | Stephanie Grant | Wilson Cruz | Stephanie is a trans woman facing jail time for a solicitation charge, but after she's saved by Ally, she's beaten and murdered for being trans. [78] [79] | Fox 1997-2002 |
Cindy McCauliff | Lisa Edelstein | Recurring character Cindy McCauliff is a trans woman challenging her employer's requirement that she undergo a physical examination. Unaware of her trans status, Mark starts dating her, but when she does tell him, he feels betrayed, calls her a man, and is sick to his stomach. [80] [79] | ||
Beggars and Choosers | Malcolm Laffley | Tuc Watkins | Laffley is a television casting director who came out to disprove sexual harassment charges leveled at him by a woman. [81] | Showtime 1999–2001 |
The Brian Benben Show | Billy Hernandez | Luis Antonio Ramos | Billy is gay, and the weatherman at the fictitious KYLA-TV news station. [54] | CBS 1998 |
The Brittas Empire | Gavin Featherly | Tim Marriott | Gavin and his partner Tim, were the first openly same-sex couple to ever appear in a British comedy on the BBC. [82] | BBC 1991–1997 |
Tim Whistler | Russell Porter | |||
The Crew | Paul Steadman | David Burke | Paul is a gay flight attendant that works for the fictitious Regency Airlines. [83] | Fox 1995–1996 |
Cutters | Troy King | Julius Carry | Troy was an Olympic gold medalist turned hairdresser. [83] | CBS 1993 |
Cybill | Waiter | Tim Maculan | The acerbic and riotous unnamed waiter at Cybill's favorite restaurant. In the episode titled "Whose Wife Am I, Anyway?", the waiter, who is nervous about telling his parents that he is gay, introduces Cybill as his fiancée. [84] [85] | CBS 1995-1998 |
Daddy's Girls | Dennis Sinclair | Harvey Fierstein | Sinclair is a high-strung fashion designer. He was the first gay principal television character played by an openly gay actor. [86] | CBS 1994 |
Drop the Dead Donkey | Helen Cooper | Ingrid Lacey | Helen finally comes out to her mother, but discovers her secret was already well known. [87] [88] | Channel 4 1990–1998 |
Ellen | Ellen Morgan | Ellen DeGeneres | Ellen Morgan comes out to her therapist (Oprah Winfrey), and then announces it over an airport loudspeaker, and then comes out to her friends, in the episode titled "The Puppy Episode". Ellen begins dating Laurie (Lisa Darr) in the final season. [89] | ABC 1994–1998 |
Susan | Laura Dern | Susan is a lesbian who helps Ellen come out of the closet in "The Puppy Episode" [90] | ||
Peter Barnes | Patrick Bristow | Peter and Barrett are Ellen's friends and an openly gay couple. [91] | ||
Barrett | Jack Plotnick | |||
Evening Shade | Ginger | Diahann Carroll | Ponder (Ossie Davis) is set up with Ginger who he learns is transgender. [92] | CBS 1990–1994 |
Fired Up | Ashley Mann | Mark Davis | Ashley is a drag queen, and Gwen's neighbor. Mark Davis, who portrays Ashley, is an openly gay comic. [93] [94] | NBC 1997–1998 |
Friends | Carol Willick | Jane Sibbett | Carol is lesbian and Ross's ex-wife. Susan is lesbian and Carol's girlfriend. Carol and Susan married in season 2 episode "The One with the Lesbian Wedding". It was the first lesbian wedding portrayed on U.S. television. [95] [96] | NBC 1994–2004 |
Susan Bunch | Jessica Hecht | |||
Charles Bing / Helena Handbasket | Kathleen Turner | Charles is Chandler's transgender dad, who transitioned into a woman and renamed as Helena. [97] | ||
Gimme Gimme Gimme | Tom Farrell | James Dreyfus | Tom is openly gay and a wannabe actor who has only had small roles on TV and on stage. [23] | BBC2 BBC1 1999-2001 |
Grace & Favour | Mr. Humphries | John Inman | A spin-off of Are You Being Served?. The employees of the fictional department store where they previously worked inherit an estate (Millstone Manor), that is the locale of the show. [23] | BBC1 1992-1993 |
Head over Heels | Ian | Patrick Bristow | Ian is a celibate bisexual who works at the fictional Head Over Heels video dating agency. [62] | UPN 1997 |
Hearts Afire | Diandra | Julie Cobb | Diandra is the ex-wife, now a lesbian, of John (John Ritter). Diandra and her lover Ruth had three guest appearances. [98] | CBS 1992-1995 |
Ruth | Conchata Ferrell | |||
High Society | Stephano | Luigi Amodeo | Stephano is Dot's (Mary McDonnell) assistant. The show was cancelled after 13 episodes. [93] | CBS 1995–1996 |
The John Larroquette Show | Pat | Jazzmun | A drag queen who hangs out at the bus station where the lead character works. [99] | NBC 1993–1996 |
The Larry Sanders Show | Brian | Scott Thompson | Hank Kingsley's personal assistant. [100] | HBO 1992–1998 |
Living in Captivity | Gordon | Terry Rhoads | Gordon is a gay security guard at a gated community, and often leers at the residents when they come through the gate. [101] | FOX 1998 |
Los Beltrán | Fernando Salazar | Gabriel Romero | Fernando and Kevin are gay. They are the first openly-gay characters on Spanish-language television, and first same-sex couple that marry. [102] | Telemundo 1999–2001 |
Kevin Lynch | James C. Leary | |||
Lush Life | Nelson "Margarita" Marquez | John Ortiz | Nelson is a gay bartender, hence the nickname Margarita. The show only lasted for four episodes. [93] | Fox 1996 |
Mad About You | Debbie Buchman | Robin Bartlett | Debbie is Paul's (Paul Reiser) sister and came out in 1996 on the show. Joan is Debbie's life partner and is also Jamie's (Helen Hunt) gynecologist. [103] | NBC 1992-1999 |
Dr. Joan Golfinos | Suzie Plakson | |||
Muscle | Bronwyn Jones | Amy Pietz | Lead character Bronwyn is a lesbian news anchor. [104] | The WB 1995 |
Northern Exposure | Ron Bantz | Doug Ballard | Ron and Erick are a gay couple who buy a house from Maurice (Barry Corbin) to open an upscale bed and breakfast called the Sourdough Inn. They get married in the fifth season of the series. [105] | CBS 1990-1995 |
Erick Hillman | Don McManus | |||
Cicely | Yvonne Suhor | The fictitious town of Cicely Alaska, where the show takes place, was founded by lesbian partners Cicely and Rosyln in 1908 when their car broke down in the Alaskan wilderness. Their story was told in the final episode of 1992. [105] [106] | ||
Rosyln | Jo Anderson | |||
Oh, Grow Up | Ford Lowell | John Ducey | Ford is a married man who left his wife after realizing he was gay. [107] Sal is lead character Hunter's (Stephen Dunham) boss. [108] | ABC 1999 |
Sal | Ed Marinaro | |||
Party Girl | Derrick | John Cameron Mitchell | Short-lived sitcom based on the 1995 theatrical film. [93] | Fox 1996 |
Public Morals | John Irvin | Bill Brochtrup | John Irvin, an administrative assistant, imported into the show from NYPD Blue , and returned after the cancellation of Public Morals. The series was poorly received and was canceled after airing only one episode. [109] [110] | CBS 1996 |
The Pursuit of Happiness | Alex Chosek | Brad Garrett | Alex comes out to his partner Steve. [109] | NBC 1995 |
Rude Awakening | Jackie Garcia | Rain Pryor | Jackie is a lesbian and recovering drug addict. [111] [112] | Showtime 1998-2001 |
Sex and the City | Stanford Blatch | Willie Garson | Stanford and Anthony are married. Liza Minnelli sang at their wedding. [113] Samantha is bisexual and has a romance with a woman, Maria (Sônia Braga). [114] | HBO 1998–2004 |
Anthony Marantino | Mario Cantone | |||
Samantha Jones | Kim Cattrall | |||
Spin City | Carter Heywood | Michael Boatman | Carter is the openly gay minority affairs liaison. [115] | ABC 1996–2002 |
Strangers with Candy | Jerri Blank | Amy Sedaris | Jerri is bisexual, an ex-con, ex-junkie, ex-prostitute, and high-school freshman. [116] | Comedy Central 1999–2000 |
Geoffrey Jellineck | Paul Dinello | Jellineck and Noblet are teachers at fictitious school Flatpoint High and are having a secret gay affair. [117] | ||
Chuck Noblet | Stephen Colbert | |||
Suddenly Susan | Pete Fontaine | Bill Stevenson | Pete is gay and works in the mailroom. Pete and his partner Hank got married in the episode "Oh How They Danced". [118] [119] | NBC 1996-2000 |
Hank | Fred Stoller | |||
Carlos | Bruno Campos | Luis' (Nestor Carbonell) brother Carlos comes out in episode "A Boy like That". [118] [120] | ||
Terry and Julian | Julian | Julian Clary | Julian is a very flamboyant gay that lives in Terry's flat. Clary is openly gay as well. [121] [122] | Channel 4 1992 |
Unhappily Ever After | Barry Wallenstein | Ant | Barry is a recurring character, and Tiffany's (Nikki Cox) openly gay friend at Priddy High. [123] | The WB 1995-1999 |
Veronica's Closet | Josh Blair | Wallace Langham | Josh's sexuality was obfuscated as a running joke until he came out in the episode "Veronica Helps Josh Out". [124] | NBC 1997–2000 |
The Vicar of Dibley | Frank Pickle | John Bluthal | Frank came out as gay live on the radio. Unfortunately, such is his reputation for dullness, Geraldine is his only listener. [125] | BBC 1994–1999 |
Will & Grace | Will Truman | Eric McCormack | Will is a lawyer who lives in New York City with his best friend, Grace Adler. Jack is Will's best friend and helps Will come out and find the confidence to start dating men. Vince dated Will, and then eventually married him in the original series finale (2006). However, in the 2017 reboot of the series, Will's marriage to Vince, and their child Ben is nixed, the whole previous finale explained away by a dream of Karens. [126] [127] | NBC 1998–2006 |
Jack McFarland | Sean Hayes | |||
Vince D'Angelo | Bobby Cannavale | |||
You Rang, M'Lord? | Cissy Meldrum | Catherine Rabett | Cissy is Lord Meldrum's elder daughter. She dresses in a masculine style and takes part in men's sports and activities. [128] [129] | BBC 1990–1993 |
Show | Character | Actor | Notes | Network Series run |
---|---|---|---|---|
30 Rock | Devon Banks | Will Arnett | Devon is Jack Donaghy's (Alec Baldwin) smarmy gay nemesis. Arnett has earned four Emmy nominations for his guest role. [130] [131] | NBC 2006–2013 |
Jonathan | Maulik Pancholy | Jonathan is gay, and Jack's loyal and overprotective personal assistant, who at times appears to be possibly in love with Jack. [131] | ||
J.D. Lutz | John Lutz | J.D. is bisexual, and a lazy overweight TGS writer who is often insulted or made fun of by the rest of the staff. [132] | ||
Randy Lemon | Jeffery Self | Randy is Liz Lemon's (Tina Fey) naive gay cousin, who is constantly educating Liz about gay slang. Self is openly gay. [131] | ||
Aquí no hay quien viva (No One Could Live Here) | Mauri Hidalgo | Luis Merlo | Mauri is a gay journalist who used to work for a Cosmopolitan-type magazine. He is married to Fernando Navarro. [133] | Antena 3 2003–2006 |
Fernando Navarro | Adrià Collado | Fernando is a gay lawyer who lost his job when he came out. He decided to start his own practice and is married to Mauri. [133] | ||
Bea Villarejo | Eva Isanta | Mauri's lesbian roommate and best friend. She moved in with Mauri after breaking up with her girlfriend. [133] [134] | ||
Diego Álvarez | Mariano Alameda | Diego has an affair with Mauri, but breaks it off after meeting Abel, the male nanny of Mauri's son. Diego and Abel are married. [135] | ||
Rosa Izquierdo | María Almudéver | Rosa is a lesbian, and a lawyer and was Bea's girlfriend in season 3 [135] [134] | ||
Ana | Vanesa Romero | Ana is an air hostess who, after a passionate night with Bea, ends up accepting she's a lesbian. She also sporadically works as a model. [134] | ||
Abel | Alberto Maneiro | Abel is Mauri's nanny and married to Diego. [133] | ||
Arrested Development | George Oscar "Gob" Bluth II | Will Arnett | GOB is a part-time magician and founding member of the "Magicians' Alliance". He is hinted to be bisexual throughout the series, and ends up having sex with his enemy, Tony Wonder. [136] | Fox Netflix 2003–2006 2013– |
Tony Wonder | Ben Stiller | Tony is a professional magician who commonly works at the fictitious Gothic Castle and is known for baking himself into a loaf of bread and emerging. [137] [138] | ||
Benidorm | Kenneth Du Beke | Tony Maudsley | Kenneth is a gay hairdresser who doesn't apologize for his behaviour. [139] | ITV 2007– |
Troy Ramsbottom | Paul Bazely | Troy and Gavin are married. The pair have a successful hair salon. [140] | ||
Gavin Ramsbottom | Hugh Sachs | |||
The Business | Terrence Von Holtzen | Matt Silver | Terrence is a closeted intern who is the Associate Co-head of the Animation and Historical Adaptation Department. [141] | The Movie Network IFC 2006–2007 |
The Class | Kyle Lendo | Sean Maguire | Kyle and Aaron are in a relationship. Kyle is a first-grade teacher at the fictitious Pembridge Academy, an elite private school. Aaron is a software engineer for an internet security firm. [142] | CBS 2006–2007 |
Aaron | Cristian de la Fuente | |||
The Comeback | Mickey Deane | Robert Michael Morris | Mickey is a hairdresser and confidant to lead character Valerie Cherish (Lisa Kudrow) who, despite being obviously gay, believes he is closeted. [143] | HBO 2005 |
Crumbs | Mitch Crumb | Fred Savage | Mitch is a gay struggling movie screenwriter who returns home to take care of his mother (Jane Curtin), who has recently been released from a mental institution after trying to run over her husband (William Devane). [144] | ABC 2006 |
Entourage | Lloyd | Rex Lee | Lloyd is gay and the head of the TV department. The premise of the show is loosely based on Mark Wahlberg's experiences as an up-and-coming film star. [145] [146] | HBO 2004–2011 |
Glee | Kurt Hummel | Chris Colfer | Kurt is the first gay character to come out in season one of Glee. [147] | Fox 2009–2015 |
Sandy Ryerson | Stephen Tobolowsky | He is revealed to be gay in season two. [148] | ||
Blaine Anderson | Darren Criss | Blaine and Kurt start dating and eventually get married. [147] | ||
Dave Karofsky | Max Adler | Dave is the school bully who picks on the Glee crew, comes out in season two. [147] | ||
Sebastian Smythe | Grant Gustin | Sebastian is gay and the lead singer of the fictitious Dalton Academy Warblers. [147] | ||
Brittany Pierce | Heather Morris | Brittany is an openly bisexual cheerleader. [147] | ||
Santana Lopez | Naya Rivera | Santana dates Brittany and in season two, she comes out to her grandmother. [147] | ||
Hiram Berry | Jeff Goldblum | Hiram and LeRoy Berry are Rachel's fathers. They debuted in episode "Heart" [147] | ||
LeRoy Berry | Brian Stokes Mitchell | |||
Unique Adams | Alex Newell | Unique is a transgender girl. [147] | ||
Sheldon Beiste | Dot-Marie Jones | In season six, he comes out as transgender making him the first trans man on the show. [147] | ||
Go Girls | Levi Hirsh | Leon Wadham | Levi is a sassy gay Jewish man whose pledge is to get revenge. [149] | TVNZ 2 2009–2013 |
Kent | Josh McKenzie | Levi's ex-boyfriend and first love since high school. [150] | ||
Grosse Pointe | Richard Towers | Michael Hitchcock | A behind-the-scenes drama on the set of a television show. Richard is a closeted gay character who ogles his on-screen son and finds ways to see him without clothes on. [151] [62] | WB 2000–2001 |
How I Met Your Mother | James Stinson | Wayne Brady | James is Barney Stinson's gay black brother. He is married to Tom and they have 2 children together. [152] | CBS 2005–2014 |
It's All Relative | Simon Banks | Christopher Sieber | Simon and Philip are life partners with an adoptive daughter, Liz (Maggie Lawson). Liz gets engaged to Bobby O'Neill (Reid Scott) who comes from a conservative blue-collar family. Bobby's father is a bigot, upset about Philip and Simon being a gay couple. [153] | ABC 2003–2004 |
Philip Stoddard | John Benjamin Hickey | |||
It's Always Sunny in Philadelphia | Ronald "Mac" MacDonald | Rob McElhenney | A long-running theme on the show is the ambiguity surrounding Mac's sexuality which culminates in him coming out as gay in season 12. [154] The series is the longest-running live-action comedy series in American television history. [155] | FXX 2005– |
Country Mac | Seann William Scott | Country Mac is gay. Mac invites along his cousin, Country Mac, in episode "Mac Day", where each gang member gets their own day to do whatever they want with no complaints from the others. When they visit a gym full of bodybuilders, Mac insists the gang help oil them up. Country Mac is happy to assist, revealing to the gang that he is gay. [156] | ||
It's Me...Gerald | Gerald | Gerald L'Ecuyer | Gerald is a struggling gay theatre director trying to stage a production of Hedda Gabler . He tries to find the money by any means necessary to finance his vision, while a camera crew documents his efforts. [157] | Showcase 2005 |
Kick | Layla | Nicole Chamoun | Layla is a Muslim-Australian who lives with her conservative family and is engaged to Sharif. But when she falls in love with Jackie, she has to choose between following her heart or making her family happy. [158] | SBS 2007 |
Jackie | Romi Trower | |||
Modern Family | Mitchell Pritchett | Jesse Tyler Ferguson | Mitchell and Cam are married, and raising their adoptive daughter Lily. [159] | ABC 2009–2020 |
Cameron Tucker | Eric Stonestreet | |||
Crispin | Craig Zimmerman | Crispin is one of Mitchell and Cameron's gay friends. [160] | ||
Longines | Kevin Daniels | Longines is one of Mitchell and Cameron's gay friends. [161] | ||
Pam | Wendi McLendon-Covey | Pam and Susan are a lesbian couple with a kid. [162] | ||
Susan | Michaela Watkins | |||
Ronaldo | Christian Barillas | Ronaldo is Pepper Saltzman's assistant and later husband. [163] | ||
Pepper Saltzman | Nathan Lane | Pepper is one of Mitchell and Cameron's gay friends, and married to Ronaldo. [163] [161] | ||
Steven | Colin Hanlon | Recurring gay couple, friends of Mitchell and Cameron. [164] | ||
Stefan | Rodrigo Rojas | |||
Mord mit Aussicht (Murder with a View) | Bärbel Schmied | Meike Droste | Bärbel is bisexual and falls in love with Mathilde. They have a short affair in "Waltzing Mathilde". [165] [166] | Das Erste 2008–2014 |
Mathilde | Alwara Höfels | |||
My Family | Michael Harper | Gabriel Thomson | After coming home drunk, Michael comes out as gay to Ben and then later to Susan, in the second episode of series 10 "The Son'll Come Out". [167] | BBC1 2000–2011 |
My Name is Earl | Kenny James | Gregg Binkley | Kenny is gay, but kept it hidden until Earl helped him come out. He later was in a relationship with Stuart. [168] | NBC 2005–2009 |
Stuart Daniels | Mike O'Malley | Stuart was a policeman who lost his badge after it was stolen by Earl. He was a closeted bisexual but later engaged in a relationship with Kenny. [168] | ||
Normal, Ohio | William "Butch" Gamble | John Goodman | Butch comes out to his wife Joan (Anita Gillette) and son Charlie (Greg Pitts) and moves to California. He returns home four years later to attend a going away party for his son, who's going to medical school. When Charlie decides not to leave, Butch stays in Ohio and moves in with his sister Pam (Joely Fisher). The original concept for this series was titled Don't Ask. [169] | Fox 2000 |
Nurse Jackie | Mohammed de la Cruz | Haaz Sleiman | Mohammed and Thor are gay nurses at the fictitious All Saints' Hospital. Mohammed was dropped after the first season. The producers stated the reason being "the character's storyline ran its course". [170] | Showtime 2009–2015 |
Thor Lundgren | Stephen Wallem | |||
Dr. Eleanor O'Hara | Eve Best | Eleanor is bisexual and in a relationship with a female journalist in season 2. [171] | ||
The Office | Oscar Martinez | Oscar Nuñez | Oscar is an accountant at the office, and was outed by his boss Michael Scott (Steve Carell) during the episode called "Gay Witch Hunt" in season three. Gil is his partner who lived with him. [172] [173] | NBC 2005–2013 |
Gil | Tom Chick | |||
Matt | Sam Daly | Matt is known as the "gay warehouse guy" at the fictitious Dunder Mifflin Scranton Warehouse. Oscar secretly has a crush on him. [174] | ||
Robert Lipton | Jack Coleman | Oscar realized Robert was gay as soon as they met. Oscar did eventually give in to Robert and the two started an affair. [173] | ||
Our Hero | Ross Korolus | Justin Peroff | Ross is one of the best friends of main protagonist Kale Stiglic, who discovers that he is gay during the course of the series. [175] | CBC 2000–2002 |
Out of Practice | Regina Barnes | Paula Marshall | Regina is a lesbian E.R. doctor, who is infatuated with attractive women. [176] [177] | CBS 2005–2006 |
Peep Show | Jeremy 'Jez' Usborne | Robert Webb | Hinted earlier in the series to be bisexual, and confirmed in episodes "Gregory's Beard", where Jez has sex with Joe, and "Threeism", where Jez has sex with Megan and Joe. He also discusses his sexuality openly with roommate Mark Corrigan. [178] | Channel 4 2003–2015 |
Reaper | Tony | Ken Marino | Tony and Steve are a gay couple who live next door to the main trio of Sam, Sock, and Ben. It is later learned they are demons waging a war against the Devil. Steve is killed during the rebellion and manages to get into Heaven. He later becomes Sam's guardian angel. [179] | The CW 2007–2009 |
Steve | Michael Ian Black | |||
Reno 911! | Lieutenant Dangle | Thomas Lennon | Dangle is openly gay and sees no problem flirting with and trying to seduce straight men, even those he stops for infractions. [180] | Comedy Central 2003–2009 |
Deputy Kimball | Mary Birdsong | She is a possibly closeted lesbian, and is perpetually accused of being a lesbian, despite her denials when asked, and when asked for dates by lesbians. [181] | ||
The Sarah Silverman Program | Brian | Brian Posehn | Sarah's gay neighbors and friends, who are partners. [182] | Comedy Central 2007–2010 |
Steve | Steve Agee | |||
Scrubs | Todd Quinlan ("The Todd") | Robert Maschio | Initially portrayed as womanizing and heterosexual, Todd displays same-sex attractions as well and eventually reveals that he is attracted to almost everyone he sees, regardless of gender. He later enters into a three-way sexual relationship with a man and woman. [183] | NBC 2001–2010 |
Seven Periods with Mr Gormsby | Alisdair Morton | Thomas Robins | Alisdair is a teacher at the fictional Tepapawai High School. His life changes when he is outed by Mr Gormsby. Previously secretive about his sexuality he starts openly selling tickets to gay and lesbian balls and dressing more flamboyantly. [184] | TVNZ 1 2005–2006 |
Lesley Tangaroa | Grace Hoet | Lesley teaches physical education at the fictional Tepapawai High School. She is a lesbian, and a totally unfit Ngāti Porou. [185] | ||
Some of My Best Friends | Warren Fairbanks | Jason Bateman | Warren is a mild-mannered gay writer living in Greenwich Village. The series was inspired by the film Kiss Me, Guido . [186] | CBS 2001 |
Vern Limoso | Alec Mapa | Vern is Warren's flamboyant gay best friend, who lives upstairs and usually enters Warren's apartment by coming down the fire escape and through a window. [186] | ||
So NoTORIous | Sasan | Zachary Quinto | Sasan is an Iranian-American Muslim who hasn't told his parents he's gay. [187] | VH1 2006 |
Sophie | Matt Scott | Jeff Geddis | Matt is gay and an OB/GYN and Sophie's best friend. [188] | CBC 2008–2009 |
Sordid Lives: The Series | Earl "Brother Boy" Ingram | Leslie Jordan | Brother Boy is a drag queen and likes to perform as Tammy Wynette. He tries to escape from treatments to "dehomosexualize" him. [189] | Logo 2008 |
Ty Williamson | Jason Dottley | Ty is an actor in Los Angeles coming to terms with his homosexuality. [189] | ||
That '80s Show | Sophia | Brittany Daniel | Sophia is bisexual and has a crush on Katie. [190] | CBS 2002 |
Trailer Park Boys | Jim Lahey | John Dunsworth | Jim is bisexual, and a drunk trailer-park supervisor of the fictional Sunnyvale Trailer Park. [191] | Showcase Netflix 2001–2008 2014– |
Randy | Patrick Roach | Randy is Jim's assistant at the trailer park, and his overweight bisexual lover. [191] | ||
Twins | Neil | Christopher Fitzgerald | Neil is a flamboyantly gay technician. [192] | The WB 2005–2006 |
Two and a Half Men | Evelyn Harper | Holland Taylor | Evelyn is bisexual and the mother of Charlie and Alan Harper. [193] | CBS 2003–2015 |
Jenny Harper | Amber Tamblyn | Jenny, the previously unknown daughter of Charlie, is lesbian. She engages in several one-night stands with various women (introduced in season 11). [194] | ||
Ugly Betty | Alexis Meade | Rebecca Romijn | Alexis is Daniel's trans sister. [195] | ABC 2006–2010 |
Elizabeth Payne | ||||
United States of Tara | Marshall Gregson | Keir Gilchrist | Marshall is an openly gay teenager, and not once does he shy away from who he is. Lionel is Marshall's boyfriend. [196] | Showtime 2009–2011 |
Lionel Trane | Michael J. Willett | |||
Ted Mayo | Michael Hitchcock | Openly gay neighbor of the family. [197] | ||
The War at Home | Khaleel "Kenny" Al-Bahir | Rami Malek | Kenny is a 16-year-old boy who harbors a secret crush on his best friend Larry and is subsequently kicked out of his house when his parents find out he's gay. [198] | Fox 2005–2007 |
Wizards of Waverly Place | Alex Russo | Selena Gomez | The showruner of confirmed that Alex was bisexual. [199] [200] | Disney Channel 2007–2012 |
Show | Character | Actor | Notes | Network Series run |
---|---|---|---|---|
195 Lewis | Yuri | Rae Leone Allen | Yuri is lesbian. Camille is lesbian. Yuri and Camille are a couple experimenting with polyamory. [201] [202] | One Nine Five Lewis 2017 |
Camille | Sirita Wright | |||
American Housewife | Angela | Carly Hughes | Angela is a lesbian and one of Katie's best friends and fellow moms. [203] | ABC 2016–2021 |
Andi Mack | Cyrus Goodman | Joshua Rush | Cyrus is in a relationship with TJ Kippen. It is the first gay relationship on Disney Channel, and Cyrus is the first gay main character. [204] | Disney Channel 2017–2019 |
TJ Kippen | Luke Mullen | |||
Anger Management | Patrick | Michael Arden | Patrick is gay and Charlie's passive-aggressive anger-management patient. [205] | FX 2012–2014 |
Another Period | Victor | Brian Huskey | Victor and Albert are a gay couple. Dr. Goldberg is gay. [206] | Comedy Central 2015–2018 |
Albert | David Wain | |||
Dr. John Goldberg | Moshe Kasher | |||
Awkward | Clark Stevenson | Joey Haro | Clark is outed by the school bully in the season one finale. Clark is caught making out with Ricky in the final episode of season two. [207] | MTV 2011–2016 |
Ricky Schwartz | Matthew Fahey | Ricky is bisexual, and has had relations with Tamara and Sadie, and in the second-season finale was with Clark. [207] | ||
Tamara Kaplan | Jillian Rose Reed | Tamara comes out as bisexual in the second-season finale. [207] | ||
Theo Abbott | Cole Higgins | Theo and Cole are openly gay, and best friends. They are a bit obnoxious, and trouble makers. [208] | ||
Evan Crooks | Monty Geer | |||
Barry | NoHo Hank | Anthony Carrigan | NoHo Hank is a gay member of the Chechen mafia, who begins a relationship with Cristobal, the leader of the Bolivian mafia. [209] [210] | HBO 2018-2023 |
Cristobal Sifuentes | Michael Irby | |||
Black-ish | Sharon Duckworth | Elle Young | Rhona and Sharon are exes. [211] | ABC 2014-2022 |
Rhonda Johnson | Raven-Symoné | |||
Kim | N/A | Kim and Stella are married. [211] | ||
Stella | Jessica Leigh Gonzales | |||
Laura | Edi Patterson | Laura is bisexual. [211] | ||
Black Monday | Keith Shankar | Paul Scheer | Keith is a closeted gay. [212] | Showtime 2019–2021 |
Blair Pfaff | Andrew Rannells | Blair is revealed to be gay at the end of Season 1. In season 2 he starts having an affair with a married man, congressman Roger Harris. [213] | ||
Roger Harris | Tuc Watkins | |||
Blue Mountain State | Debra Simon | Denise Richards | Debra is the football coach's ex-wife, she sleeps with a lot of the football players, her ex-husband, and a cheerleader. [214] | Spike 2010–2011 |
Mary Jo Cacciatore | Frankie Shaw | Mary Jo is in love with the quarterback and a cheerleader. No one likes her, mostly because she comes to practice drunk. [214] | ||
Boy Meets Girl | Judy | Rebecca Root | Judy is a male-to-female transexual. [215] | BBC Two 2015–2016 |
Charlie | Tyler Luke Cunningham | Charlie is a female-to-male transexual. Charlie and Judy both attend the same support group. [215] | ||
Broad City | Ilana Wexler | Ilana Glazer | Ilana is bisexual. [216] [217] | Comedy Central 2014–2019 |
Abbi Abrams | Abbi Jacobson | Abbi is bisexual. [216] | ||
Jaime Castro | Arturo Castro | Jaime is gay. [217] | ||
Matt Bevers | John Gemberling | Matt is a closeted bisexual. [217] | ||
Lesley Marnel | Clea DuVall | Lesley is lesbian. [216] [217] | ||
Brooklyn Nine-Nine | Captain Ray Holt | Andre Braugher | Captain Holt is the openly gay captain of the 99th Police Precinct. Kevin is Holt's husband. [218] [219] | Fox NBC 2013–2021 |
Kevin Cozner | Marc Evan Jackson | |||
Rosa Diaz | Stephanie Beatriz | Rosa Diaz is a detective and comes out as bisexual in episode "99" after a fellow detective overhears a woman calling her "babe" on the phone. [220] | ||
Bunk'd | Wayne | Jacob Herren | In "No Pain, No Grain", Winnie's brother Wayne proposed to his boyfriend Nicholas. It is the first same-sex marriage proposal on Disney Channel. [204] | Disney Channel 2015–2024 |
Nicholas | Frankie Rodriguez | |||
Carol's A Demon | Carol | Brittany Ashley | Carol is a lesbian, and a 3,000-year-old demon trying to get into heaven to be with her true love, a nun. [221] [222] [223] | YouTube 2018 |
Sofia | Ashly Perez | Sofia is a lesbian. Sofia and her friends accidentally summon a 3,000-year-old demon with a Ouija board. Sofia helps the demon (Carol) stop an impending apocalypse, so she gets into heaven. [221] [224] [225] | ||
Carol's Second Act | Dr. Lexie Gilani | Sabrina Jalees | Lexie is lesbian. [226] | CBS 2019–2020 |
Champions | Michael Patel | J.J. Totah | Michael is a 15-year-old gay teenager who lives with his father and uncle in Brooklyn. Ruby is a lesbian and trainer at the gym. [227] [228] | NBC 2018 |
Ruby | Fortune Feimster | |||
Clipped | Buzzy | George Wendt | Buzzy is gay, and the owner of a hair salon. Tommy is a gay cop, his partner and later husband. [229] | TBS 2015 |
Tommy | Reginald VelJohnson | |||
The Cool Kids | Sid | Leslie Jordan | Sid is an elderly gay man living in a retirement home. He claims to have come out to his wife just before Y2K. [230] | Fox 2018–2019 |
Crazy Ex-Girlfriend | 'White Josh' Wilson | David Hull | White Josh is gay. [231] [232] | The CW 2015–2019 |
Darryl Whitefeather | Pete Gardner | Darryl is bisexual, and in a relationship with White Josh before starting a relationship with a woman. [233] | ||
Maya | Esther Povitsky | Maya is bisexual. [234] | ||
Valencia Perez | Gabrielle Ruiz | Valencia becomes aware that she is bisexual when she starts dating a woman named Beth (Emma Willmann) late in Season 3. [235] | ||
Dead to Me | Judy Hale | Linda Cardellini | Judy is bisexual. She was engaged to Steve Wood and becomes romantically involved with Michelle. Michelle is lesbian. Ana is lesbian and the ex-girlfriend of Michelle. [236] | Netflix 2019–2022 |
Michelle Gutierrez | Natalie Morales | |||
Det. Ana Perez | Diana-Maria Riva | |||
Death Valley | Carla Rinaldi | Tania Raymonde | Carla is a lesbian, and an officer in the Undead Task Force (UTF), a newly formed division of the LAPD, that captures the monsters that roam the streets of San Fernando Valley. She is in a relationship with Julia. [237] [238] | MTV 2011 |
Julia | Stacey LaBerge | Julia is a bisexual bartender, and in a relationship with Carla Rinaldi. [239] | ||
Derry Girls | Clare Devlin | Nicola Coughlan | Clare comes out as a lesbian (series 1, episode 6). [240] [241] | Channel 4 2018–2022 |
Detroiters | Lea | Lailana Ledesma | Lea is gay. In episode "Jefferson Porger", it is revealed that she has a girlfriend, Scarlett. [242] | Comedy Central 2017–2018 |
Dickinson | Emily Dickinson | Hailee Steinfeld | Emily and Susan are in a secret homosexual relationship. [243] [244] | Apple TV+ 2019–2021 |
Susan Gilbert | Ella Hunt | |||
Dirk Gently's Holistic Detective Agency | Panto Trost | Christopher Russell | Panto and Silas are a gay couple. [245] | BBC America 2016–2017 |
Silas Dengdamor | Lee Majdoub | |||
Dr. Ken | Clark Leslie Beavers | Jonathan Slavin | Clark and Connor are a gay couple. [246] | ABC 2015–2017 |
Connor | Stephen Guarino | |||
Dollface | Stella Cole | Shay Mitchell | Stella is bisexual. [247] | Hulu 2019–2022 |
Episodes | Andy Button | Joseph May | Andy is gay and the head of casting of the network. By the end of Season 1, he is fired because he likes the talking dog show. [248] | Showtime 2011–2017 |
Helen Basch | Andrea Savage | Helen is a lesbian who demonstrates good instincts about creative ideas but is prone to jealousy. [249] | ||
Carol Rance | Kathleen Rose Perkins | Carol is bisexual and the network's head of programming. She becomes good friends with Beverly, with whom she often goes hiking and smokes pot. [249] | ||
Faking It | Amy Raudenfeld | Rita Volk | Amy is a fake lesbian in the first season. In the second season, she has secret feelings for her best friend Karma. [250] | MTV 2014–2016 |
Karma Ashcroft | Katie Stevens | Karma is a fake lesbian in the first season. In the second season, she kisses Amy passionately in a pool at a party (after showing hints that she might have feelings for her). [250] | ||
Shane Harvey | Michael J. Willett | Shane, the most popular boy in school, is openly gay. [251] | ||
Lauren Cooper | Bailey De Young | Lauren is intersex (the first intersex main character on a television show). [252] | ||
Noah | Elliot Fletcher | Noah is transgender and gay. [253] | ||
Brad | Sidney Franklin | Brad is asexual. [254] | ||
Sabrina | Sophia Taylor Ali | Sabrina is Karma and Amy's old friend who later confess her love for Amy. [255] | ||
Pablo | Anthony Palacios | Pablo is a celibate gay. [256] | ||
Reagan | Yvette Monreal | Reagan is a lesbian. [257] | ||
Duke Lewis Jr. | Skyler Maxon | Duke is a closeted gay MMA fighter/trainer. [258] | ||
Fleabag | Belinda | Kristin Scott Thomas | Belinda is lesbian. Fleabag is bisexual. [259] | BBC Three (season 1) BBC One (season 2) 2016-2019 |
Fleabag | Phoebe Waller-Bridge | |||
Fresh Off the Boat | Nicole Ellis | Luna Blaise | Nicole comes out to Eddie by telling him she likes girls. In episode "A League Of Her Own" she comes out as a lesbian to her stepmother and father. [260] | ABC 2015–2020 |
Friends from College | Max Adler | Fred Savage | Max and Felix are a gay couple. Max is a literary agent, while Felix is a fertility doctor. [261] | Netflix 2017–2019 |
Felix Forzenheim | Billy Eichner | |||
Fuller House | Casey | Ben J. Pierce | Casey is gay. He and Ramona go to the school prom together as friends. First openly gay character in series. [262] | Netflix 2016–2020 |
Ghosts | The Captain | Ben Willbond | The Captain is a gay WWII officer who haunts Button House. [263] | BBC One 2019 |
The Girl's Guide to Depravity | Tyler | Joe Komara | Tyler is gay and the wise-cracking bartender at the club frequented by several of the other characters. [264] | Cinemax 2012–2013 |
GLOW | Arthie Premkumar | Sunita Mani | Arthie may be lesbian or bisexual. Yolanda is a lesbian. In season 2, it's revealed that Florian is gay and dies from an AIDS illness. Arthie and Yolanda are roommates that fall for each other. [265] [266] [267] | Netflix 2017–2020 |
Yolanda | Shakira Barrera | |||
Florian | Alex Rich | |||
Go On | Anne | Julie White | Anne is a member of the show's central support group, a lesbian mother whose wife recently died. [268] | NBC 2012–2013 |
Good Luck Charlie | Susan | Desi Lydic | Susan and Cheryl are a lesbian couple, revealed in the fourth season episode "Down a Tree", when Amy and Bob arrange a play-date with one of Charlie's friends. They are the first openly gay couple to be featured on the Disney Channel. [269] | Disney Channel 2010–2014 |
Cheryl | Lilli Birdsell | |||
The Good Place | Eleanor Shellstrop | Kristen Bell | Eleanor is bisexual. She has exhibited attraction to male and female characters, including Chidi Anagonye, Tahani Al-Jamil, and Janet. [270] | NBC 2016–2020 |
John Wheaton | Brandon Scott Jones | John is a bitchy gay gossip columnist who frequently mocked Tahani on his blog. [271] | ||
Grandfathered | Annelise | Kelly Jenrette | Annelise is Jimmy's (John Stamos) assistant and right-hand woman who is openly a lesbian. [272] | FOX 2015 |
Grandma's House | Simon | Simon Amstell | Simon is a fictionalized version of gay comedian and TV host Simon Amstell. Over the course of the series he develops a relationship with actor Ben Theodore. [273] [274] | BBC Two 2010–2012 |
Ben Theodore | Iwan Rheon | |||
The Great Indoors | Mason | Shaun Brown | Mason is bisexual. [275] | CBS 2016–2017 |
Grown-ish | Nomi Segal | Emily Arlook | Nomi is bisexual, but not out to her family. Dave is bisexual. [276] [277] | Freeform 2018–2024 |
Big Dave | Barrett Carnahan | |||
Happily Divorced | Peter Lovett | John Michael Higgins | Peter, a realtor, comes out to his wife Fran (Fran Drescher) after 18 years of marriage. The series is based on the real story of Drescher and her ex-husband, Peter Marc Jacobson. [278] | TV Land 2011–2013 |
Happy Endings | Max Blum | Adam Pally | Max, a bearish slacker who constantly schemes ridiculous ideas to take advantage of his tendency toward laziness, is one of the show's central characters. [279] | ABC 2011–2013 |
Derrick | Stephen Guarino | Derrick, a recurring character, is a friend of Max from the gym. He marries his boyfriend Eric at the end of season two. [280] | ||
Jane Kerkovich-Williams | Eliza Coupe | Jane is bisexual. In season 3, her husband found out that she was in love with several women during college. [281] | ||
Grant | James Wolk | Grant is Max's former boyfriend who comes back into his life in season two when he shows up in Max's limo on Valentine's Day. [282] | ||
Hart of Dixie | Crickett Watts | Brandi Burkhardt | In season 4, Crickett comes out just as she was about to renew vows with Stanley Watts. After this she started dating Jaysene. [283] | The CW 2011–2015 |
The Hard Times of RJ Berger | Max Owens | Jayson Blair | RJ (Paul Iacono) discovers Max is secretly gay when he sees him making out in the high school locker room showers with Guillermo in the season 2 episode "Steamy Surprise". [284] | MTV 2010–2011 |
Hot in Cleveland | Caroline Moretti | Laura San Giacomo | Caroline is Melanie's (Valerie Bertinelli) lesbian sister. [285] | TV Land 2010–2015 |
House Husbands | Kane | Gyton Grantley | Kane is gay and a stay at home dad. Tom is his partner and a firefighter. Tom is written off the show after season two. Kane then gets together with Alex who he marries. Kane and Tom mark the first time that an Australian drama has featured a gay couple raising a child. [286] [287] | Nine Network 2012–2017 |
Tom | Tim Campbell | |||
Alex | Darren McMullen | |||
Eve | Justine Clarke | Eve is a lesbian and a rival to Kane's catering business. [288] | ||
Heather Looby | Louise Siversen | Heather is a lesbian and when she's off duty, is the principal of fictional Nepean South. [288] | ||
House of Lies | Roscoe Kaan | Donis Leonard, Jr. | Roscoe is the son of lead character Marty Kaan (Don Cheadle). He is into cross-dressing, and has expressed interest in both boys and girls. [289] [290] | Showtime 2012–2016 |
Ima ve'abaz (Mom and Dads) | Erez | Yehuda Levi | Erez and Sammy are an Israeli gay couple raising a child with their best friend Talia (Maya Dagan). [291] | HOT 3 2012– |
Sammy | Yiftach Klein | |||
Imposters | Maddie Saffron | Inbar Lavi | Maddie is a bisexual con-artist who can seduce both men and women. She is Jule's ex-wife. Jules is a lesbian and was conned by Maddie. [292] | Bravo 2017–2018 |
"Jules" Langmore | Marianne Rendón | |||
Jann | Jann | Jann Arden | Jann is bisexual and, among several turmoils, coping with the end of her relationship with Cynthia. Cynthia is lesbian. [293] | CTV 2019–2021 |
Cynthia | Sharon Taylor | |||
Kidding | Scott Perera | Bernard White | Scott is a closeted gay. He and Rex had a secret affair. [294] | Showtime 2018–2020 |
Rex Farpopolis | Andrew Tinpo Lee | |||
Kim's Convenience | Enrique | Rodrigo Fernandez-Stoll | Enrique is gay. [295] | CBC Television 2016–2021 |
Janet | Andrea Bang | Janet is bisexual. | ||
LA to Vegas | Bernard | Nathan Lee Graham | Bernard is gay. [296] | Fox 2018 |
The Last Man on Earth | Erica Dundee | Cleopatra Coleman | Erica and Gail become traveling buddies and admit to having 'experimented' with homosexuality. [297] | Fox 2015-2018 |
Gail Klosterman | Mary Steenburgen | |||
Letterkenny | Dax | Gregory Waters | Ron and Dax are two openly gay gym rats who constantly make advances towards Reilly and Jonesy. They marry each other in a marriage of convenience but continue to sleep around. [298] | Crave 2016–2023 |
Ron | James Daly | |||
Glen | Jacob Tierney | Glen is a closeted pastor. His homosexuality is alluded to in many double entendre-laden comments, but never directly referred to. [298] | ||
Katy | Michelle Mylett | Katy is bisexual and has had many partners, including Mrs. McMurray and Bonnie McMurray. [298] | ||
Bonnie McMurray | Kamilla Kowal | Bonnie is bisexual. [298] | ||
Mrs. McMurray | Melanie Scrofano | Mrs. McMurray is bisexual. She and her husband are swingers and often describe their sexual adventures with other women. [298] | ||
Roald | Evan Stern | Roald is openly gay. He has an unspoken crush on Stewart. [298] | ||
Tanis | Kaniehtiio Horn | Tanis is bisexual. [298] | ||
Loudermilk | Claire | Anja Savcic | Claire is lesbian. [299] | Audience 2017–2020 |
Malibu Country | Geoffrey | Jai Rodriguez | Geoffrey is openly gay and the gatekeeper assistant to a music industry executive. [300] | ABC 2012–2013 |
Marry Me | Kevin | Dan Bucatinsky | Kevin and Kevin are a gay couple, with a daughter Annie. [301] | NBC 2014–2015 |
Kevin | Tim Meadows | |||
The McCarthys | Ronny McCarthy | Tyler Ritter | Ronny is openly gay and an assistant high school basketball coach. [302] | CBS 2014–2015 |
Merry Happy Whatever | Kayla Quinn | Ashley Tisdale | After twice breaking up with Alan, Kayla thinks she may be lesbian. [303] | Netflix 2019 |
Metro Sexual | Dr. Steph Huddleston | Geraldine Hickey | Steph is lesbian. Langdon is gay. [304] [305] | 9Go! 9Now 2019– |
Dr. Langdon Marsh | Riley Nottingham | |||
The Mick | Barry | Jason Kravits | Barry is secretly gay. He is the family's financial adviser. A blackmail scheme against Barry backfires after the family learns he is not married, but rather living with his sister, who they assumed was his wife. In episode "The Hotel". [306] | Fox 2017-2018 |
Rita Pemberton | Judith Roberts | Rita Pemberton is a lesbian, and 100 years old. She tries to seduce Mickey, when the kids go to their great-grandmother's 100th birthday party. In episode "The Matriarch". [307] [308] [309] | ||
Mom | Bonnie Plunkett | Allison Janney | Bonnie is bisexual and was a drug using alcoholic as a teenager. [310] | CBS 2013–2021 |
Mrs. Brown's Boys | Rory Brown | Rory Cowan | Rory and Dino are a gay couple. Actor Rory Cowan is openly gay. [311] | RTÉ One 2011– |
Dino Doyle | Gary Hollywood | |||
Mrs. Fletcher | Margo | Jen Richards | Margo is a trans woman. [312] | HBO 2019 |
Eve Fletcher | Kathryn Hahn | Eve Fletcher is bisexual. [313] | ||
Murphy Brown | Pat Patel | Nik Dodani | Pat is openly gay. [314] | CBS 2018 |
Mystery Girls | Nick Diaz | Miguel Pinzon | Nick is the perky gay assistant to two detectives. Miguel Pinzon, who plays the character is openly gay as well. [315] | ABC Family 2014 |
The New Normal | David Sawyer | Justin Bartha | David and Bryan are a gay couple who have hired a surrogate mother. [316] | NBC 2012–2013 |
Bryan Collins | Andrew Rannells | |||
No Good Nick | Jeremy Thompson | Kalama Epstein | Jeremy and Eric are gay. Jeremy and Eric are seen kissing in Part 2, and Eric helps Jeremy come out to his family. [317] | Netflix 2019 |
Eric | Gus Kamp | |||
Now Apocalypse | Ulysses | Avan Jogia | Ulysses is bisexual. Gabriel is gay. Isaac is gay. [318] [319] | Starz 2019 |
Gabriel | Tyler Posey | |||
Isaac | Jacob Artist | |||
One Big Happy | Lizzy | Elisha Cuthbert | Lizzy is a lesbian, who decides to have a baby together with her best friend Luke. [320] | NBC 2015 |
One Day at a Time | Elena Alvarez | Isabella Gómez | Elena comes out as a lesbian in the second half of the first season. Elena befriends, and eventually dates Syd, who is non-binary. [321] [322] | Netflix 2017–2020 |
Syd | Sheridan Pierce | |||
Other Space | Karen Lipinski | Bess Rous | Karen and Tina are revealed to have had a one-night stand in college. [323] | Yahoo! Screen 2015 |
Tina Shukshin | Milana Vayntrub | |||
Stewart Lipinski | Karan Soni | Stewart mentions having had a boyfriend and is attracted to Tina's male fraternal twin in a dream. [323] | ||
The Other Two | Cary Dubek | Drew Tarver | Cary is openly gay. [324] | Comedy Central 2019–2023 |
Partners | Louis | Michael Urie | Louis is a gay architect who is business partners with his friend Charlie. Wyatt is his boyfriend, and a nurse. [325] | CBS 2012 |
Wyatt | Brandon Routh | |||
Please Like Me | Josh | Josh Thomas | Josh is openly gay and dates several men throughout the series. [326] | ABC2 2013–2016 |
Ben | David Quirk | Ben is bisexual and was a one-night stand of Josh's. [327] [328] | ||
Geoffrey | Wade Briggs | Geoffrey was Josh's first boyfriend. [329] | ||
Arnold | Keegan Joyce | Arnold was Josh's boyfriend through most of the series. [330] | ||
Queering | Harper | Sophia Grasso | Harper is lesbian. Val is Harper's mother and comes out as bisexual. Devon is lesbian. [331] [332] | YouTube 2018– |
Val | Susan Gallagher | |||
Devon | Diana Oh | |||
Raven's Home | Nikki | Juliana Joel | Nikki is trans, and Raven's assistant. [333] [334] | Disney Channel 2017–2023 |
The Real O'Neals | Kenny O'Neal | Noah Galvin | Sixteen-year-old Kenny comes out to his Catholic family. Sean is gay and Kenny's first boyfriend. [335] [336] [337] | ABC 2016–2017 |
Brett Young | Sean Grandillo | |||
Rentnercops | Victoria "Vicky" Adam | Katja Danowski | Vicky is a lesbian detective chief and head of her department. Greta is lesbian and Vicky's wife. [338] [339] [340] [341] | ARD 2015–2024 |
Greta Adam | Jutta Dolle | |||
Roadies | Donna Mancini | Keisha Castle-Hughes | Donna Mancini is a lesbian sound engineer and is trying to have a baby with her partner Lori. [342] | Showtime 2016 |
Running Wilde | Mr. Lunt | Robert Michael Morris | Mr. Lunt is gay, and the personal assistant to lead character Steve Wilde (Will Arnett). [343] | Fox 2010 |
Sally4Ever | Sally | Catherine Shepherd | Sally comes out as lesbian when she meets Emma and they get involved. Emma is a lesbian. [344] [345] | Sky Atlantic HBO 2018 |
Emma | Julia Davis | |||
Schitt's Creek | David Rose | Dan Levy | David is pansexual, and married to Patrick who is gay. [346] | CBC Pop TV 2015–2020 |
Patrick Brewer | Noah Reid | |||
Connor | Matthew Tissi | Connor is a gay high school student. Jocelyn asks David to counsel Connor whom she feels is not fitting in. [346] | ||
Jake | Steve Lund | Jake is bisexual. He was dating Stevie and David at the same time.[ citation needed ] | ||
Sebastien Raine | François Arnaud | David's ex-boyfriend, who arrives in town to do a photoshoot with Moira. [347] | ||
Ronnie Lee | Karen Robinson | Ronnie is a lesbian and a member of the town council. [348] | ||
Scream Queens | Sam | Jeanna Han | Sam is a lesbian. [349] [350] | FOX 2015–2016 |
Sadie Swenson / Chanel No. 3 | Billie Lourd | Chanel No. 3 is a bisexual. [351] | ||
Boone Clemens | Nick Jonas | Boone is gay and a member of the Dicky Dollar Scholars. [352] | ||
Sean Saves the World | Sean | Sean Hayes | Sean is a divorced gay father with a successful, yet demanding, career. [353] | NBC 2013–2014 |
Sex & Drugs & Rock & Roll | Gigi Rock | Elizabeth Gillies | Gigi is the lead singer of the fictional band The Assassins and Johnny's (Denis Leary) daughter. She is shacked up with a much older bandmate and is starting to explore lesbian liaisons. [354] | FX 2015–2016 |
$#*! My Dad Says | Tim | Tim Bagley | Tim is the openly gay housekeeper. Tim helped Dr. Goodson (William Shatner), cheat on his driver's license exam at the DMV in episode one. After getting fired for helping him cheat, Tim sees Dr. Goodson at a gay-themed restaurant where he now works. Dr. Goodson, feeling bad for Tim getting fired, hires him as his housekeeper. [355] | CBS 2010–2011 |
Shrill | Fran | Lolly Adefope | Fran is a lesbian and the main character's best friend. Gabe is gay and the main character's boss. [356] | Hulu 2019–2021 |
Gabe Parrish | John Cameron Mitchell | |||
Silicon Valley | Dee Dee | A.D. Miles | Dee Dee is gay, and runs a gay Christian fictional dating app called FirstSight. [357] | HBO 2014–2019 |
Sirens (2011) | Ashley Greenwick | Richard Madden | Ashley is a gay EMT. [358] | Channel 4 2011 |
Sirens (2014) | Hank St. Clare | Kevin Daniels | Hank is an openly gay EMT. The show is based on the British series of the same name. [359] | USA Network 2014–2015 |
Valentina 'Voodoo' Dunacci | Kelly O'Sullivan | Voodoo is an asexual EMT. [360] | ||
Suburgatory | Mr. Wolfe | Rex Lee | Mr. Wolfe is a guidance counselor at fictional Chatswin High School. He comes out in the episode "Out in the Burbs". [361] | ABC 2011–2014 |
Superstore | Mateo | Nico Santos | Mateo and Jeff are a gay couple with complications. [362] | NBC 2015–2021 |
Jeff | Michael Bunin | |||
Survivor's Remorse | M-Chuck Calloway | Erica Ash | M-Chuck Calloway is a lesbian and a womanizer. She is often loud-mouthed and vulgar. [363] [364] | Starz 2014-2017 |
Hazel-Fay | Nicholle Tom | Hazel-Fay is a lesbian. M-Chuck started arguing with Hazel-Fay while visiting a plantation museum and the two ended up having sex in one of the museum's beds. [365] [366] | ||
Julz | Julieanna Marie Goddard | Julz is bisexual, and has a one night stand with M-Chuck. [365] [367] | ||
Janine | Anastacia McPherson | Janine is bisexual. M-Chuck's neighbor, after finding her lost dog, they have sex. [365] [368] | ||
Maura | Sandra Hinojosa | Maura is a lesbian. M-Chuck has sex with Maura, not knowing she's a sex-worker. [365] [369] | ||
The Switch | Sü | Nyla Rose | Trans woman played by trans actress. [370] | OutTV 2015–2016 |
Telenovela (Latin American soap opera) | Gael Garnica | Jose Moreno Brooks | Gael is gay. [371] | NBC 2015 |
The Tick | Dangerboat | Alan Tudyk (voice) | Dangerboat, Overkill's artificial intelligence watercraft, develops homosexual feelings for Arthur. [372] | Amazon Prime Video 2016–2019 |
Trial & Error | Larry Henderson | John Lithgow | Larry is bisexual, and on trial for murder. [373] | NBC 2017–2018 |
Unbreakable Kimmy Schmidt | Titus Andromedon | Tituss Burgess | Titus is gay and Kimmy's friend and roommate. [374] | Netflix 2015–2019 |
Brandon | Brandon Jones | Brandon is the gay husband of Kimmy's friend, Cyndee. [374] | ||
Mikey Politano | Mike Carlsen | Mikey is Titus's boyfriend. [374] | ||
Undateable | Brett | David Fynn | Brett is a gay bartender. [375] | NBC 2014–2016 |
Vicious | Freddie Thornhill | Ian McKellen | Freddie and Stuart are a gay couple in their 70's, who have lived together in a small flat for nearly 50 years. Freddie was an actor and Stuart a barman when they first met, but their careers are now pretty much over; their lives now consist of reading books, walking their dog and bickering. [376] | ITV 2013–2016 |
Stuart Bixby | Derek Jacobi | |||
Weird Loners | Zara Sandhu | Meera Rohit Kumbhani | Zara is bisexual and an angsty artist. [377] | FOX 2015 |
Wet Hot American Summer: First Day of Camp | Ben | Bradley Cooper | Ben and Susie are known by everyone to be an item, except Ben is gay and in a secret relationship with gay counselor McKinley. [378] [379] | Netflix 2015 |
McKinley Dozen | Michael Ian Black | |||
What We Do in the Shadows | Nadja | Natasia Demetriou | Nadja is a bisexual vampire. Laszlo is bisexual. He is an English nobleman turned into a vampire by Nadja and is now married to her. Nandor is a bisexual 757-year-old vampire. [380] | FX 2019– |
Laszlo Cravensworth | Matt Berry | |||
Nandor | Kayvan Novak | |||
Guillermo de la Cruz | Harvey Guillén | Guillermo comes out as gay to his family in season four, episode seven ("Pine Barrens"). [381] | ||
Whitney | Neal | Maulik Pancholy | Neal comes out as gay after his friends catch him on a date with a man. [382] | NBC 2012–2013 |
Work in Progress | Abby | Abby McEnany | Abby is lesbian and describes herself as a "fat, queer dyke". Chris is a trans man. [383] | Showtime 2019–2021 |
Chris | Theo Germaine | |||
Campbell | Celeste Pechous | Campbell is Abby's best friend and lesbian. [384] | ||
Yonderland | Elder Ho-Tan | Laurence Rickard/Clare Thomson (briefly in S2E8) | Ho-Tan is a trans woman who is the scribe of the Council of Elders. | Sky One 2013–2016 |
You Me Her | Isabelle "Izzy" Silva | Priscilla Faia | Izzy is bisexual and turned the Jack and Emma couple into a throuple. [385] | Audience Network 2016–2020 |
Emma Trakarsky | Rachel Blanchard | Emma is bisexual and admitted to having a few romantic and sexual relationships with women in the past. [386] | ||
Zoe Ever After | Valente | Tory Devon Smith | Valente is gay, and works at an up-and-coming cosmetics business. [387] | BET 2016 |
Show | Character | Actor | Notes | Network Series run |
---|---|---|---|---|
Abbott Elementary | Jacob Hill | Chris Perfetti | Jacob is a sixth grade history teacher at Abbot Elementary. In the episode titled "Work Family", Jacob reveals he has been dating his boyfriend Zach for 2 years. [388] | ABC 2021– |
Zach | Larry Owens | |||
Avenue 5 | Ryan Clark | Hugh Laurie | Clark has a husband and a wife, indicating he is bisexual. [389] | HBO 2020–2022 |
Big Shot | Carolyn "Mouse" Smith | Tisha Eve Custodio | Mouse has a massive crush on Harper, an female journalist at the school. [390] | Disney+ 2021–2022 |
Boy Luck Club | JJ Lai | Kit DeZolt | JJ is a yoga instructor who gets together with his five 'gaysian' best friends every Friday night for cocktails via online chats to offer support to help each other navigate life under quarantine. [391] [392] | AsianAmericanMovies.com 2020– |
Julian Tran | David Vi Hoang | |||
Otis Wu | Eric Cheng | |||
Aiden Wong | Stanson Chung | |||
Ronald Cruz | Justin Madriaga | |||
Felix Costa | Xavier Durante | |||
Danger Force | Dustan | Brandon Claybon | Dustan and Justin are a gay couple raising their adoptive child Ellis. When Ellis gets lost, the Danger Force rescues him and reunites him with his dads. [393] | Nickelodeon 2020–2024 |
Justin | Tommy Dickie | |||
Diary of a Future President | Camila | Jessica Marie Garcia | Camila is lesbian. She has a girlfriend, but is apprehensive about coming out to her parents. [394] | Disney+ 2020–2021 |
Doogie Kameāloha, M.D. | Charles Zeller | Jeffrey Bowyer-Chapman | Zeller is gay. She has a ex-boyfriend. [395] | Disney+ 2021–2023 |
Everything's Gonna Be Okay | Nicholas | Josh Thomas | Nicholas and Adam are a gay couple. When Nicholas' father dies, he is responsible for taking care of his teenage half-sisters. [396] [397] | Freeform 2020–2021 |
Alex | Adam Faison | |||
Feel Good | Mae | Mae Martin | Mae and George are in a relationship. [398] [399] | Channel 4 Netflix 2020–2021 |
George | Charlotte Ritchie | |||
Ghosts | Isaac Higgintoot | Brandon Scott Jones | Isaac is a gay Revolutionary War officer who haunts Woodstone Manor. [400] | CBS 2021- |
High Fidelity | Robyn "Rob" Brooks | Zoë Kravitz | Rob is bisexual, and works at the record store she owns. The series is based on Nick Hornby's novel High Fidelity and the film. [401] | Hulu 2020 |
Simon Miller | David H. Holmes | Simon and Blake are a gay couple. Simon works at the record store, while Blake is a bartender. The series was canceled after one season. [402] | ||
Blake | Edmund Donovan | |||
Hacks | Beth | Blair Beeken | Beth and Winnie are ex-wives. [403] | HBO Max (seasons 1–2) Max (season 3–present) 2021– |
Winnie Landell | Helen Hunt | |||
Home Economics | Sarah Hayworth | Caitlin McGee | Sarah and Denise are a lesbian couple. They are married with two kids. Sarah is unemployed, while Denise is a school teacher. [404] [405] | ABC 2021–2023 |
Denise | Sasheer Zamata | |||
Indebted | Joanna | Jessy Hodges | Joanna is lesbian. [406] | NBC 2020 |
Julie and the Phantoms | Alex Mercer | Owen Joyner | Alex is a gay ghost, and the drummer for the fictional band Julie and the Phantoms. He falls in love with another gay ghost named Willie, an avid skateboarder. [407] [408] | Netflix 2020 |
Willie | Booboo Stewart | |||
Mr. Mayor | Susan Krap | Natalie Morales | Susan Krap is a lesbian.[ citation needed ] | NBC 2021–2022 |
Only Murders in the Building | Alice Banks | Cara Delevingne | Mabel and Alice are in a romantic relationship [409] | Hulu 2021– |
Mabel Mora | Selena Gomez | |||
Detective Williams | Da'Vine Joy Randolph | Williams is married to another woman, and they raise a child. | ||
Howard Morris | Michael Cyril Creighton | Howard is gay. | ||
Jan Bellows | Amy Ryan | Jan dates Charles' stunt double Sazz. | ||
Sazz Pataki | Jane Lynch | |||
Our Flag Means Death | Edward "Blackbeard" Teach | Taika Waititi | Ed & Stede's relationship is confirmed to be romantic in 1x09. [410] | HBO Max 2022–2024 |
Stede Bonnet | Rhys Darby | |||
Lucius | Nathan Foad | Lucius is openly gay and is in a sexual and romantic relationship with Black Pete. [411] | ||
Black Pete | Matthew Maher | |||
Bonifacia Jimenez/Jim | Vico Ortiz | Bonifacia/Jim is a non-binary character who goes by the alias 'Jim' while hiding aboard Bonnet's ship. After removing the male disguise, Jim begins using they/them pronouns. [412] | ||
Pivoting | Sarah | Maggie Q | Sarah is bisexual. [413] | Fox 2022 |
Saved by the Bell | Lexi Haddad-DeFabrizio | Josie Totah | Lexi is a trans woman, and Queen bee of the school. [414] | Peacock 2020–2021 |
Space Force | Dr. Adrian Mallory | John Malkovich | Dr. Mallory is gay and Space Force's chief scientist. He is frequently frustrated by the ineptitude of everyone surrounding him. [415] | Netflix 2020–2022 |
Ted Lasso | Colin Hughes | Billy Harris | Colin Hughes is a footballer for AFC Richmond, who comes out during the third season, firstly doing so to Trent Crimm, a journalist who similarly discusses their sexuality. [416] | Apple TV 2020–2023 |
Trent Crimm | James Lance | |||
Twenties | Hattie | Jonica "Jojo" T. Gibbs | Hattie is a queer aspiring screenwriter, living in Los Angeles. [417] | BET 2020–2021 |
YYY | Nott | Yoon Phusanu | YYY is a Thai boys' love comedy series, about boys living in the same apartment together. [418] Nott and Pun are gay love interests. [419] | Line TV 2020– |
Pun | Lay Talay | |||
Porpla | Poppy Ratchapong | Porpla is a trans woman, and one of the roommates. [420] | ||
Uncoupled | Michael Lawson | Neil Patrick Harris | Michael is a newly single gay man in New York. [421] | Netflix Showtime 2022 |
Colin McKenna | Tuc Watkins | Colin is Michael's former partner of 17 years. [421] | ||
Billy | Emerson Brooks | Billy and Stanley are gay friends of Michael. [421] | ||
Stanley | Brooks Ashmanskas | |||
Zoey's Extraordinary Playlist | Mo | Alex Newell | Mo is Zoey's gay, gender non-conforming neighbor and DJ who tries to help her understand the extent of her power. [422] | NBC 2020–2021 |
Eddie | Patrick Ortiz | Eddie is gay and Mo's love interest. [423] | ||
These lists of television programs with LGBT characters include:
Lesbian portrayal in media is generally in relation to feminism, love and sexual relationships, marriage and parenting. Some writers have stated that lesbians have often been depicted as exploitative and unjustified plot devices. Common representations of lesbians in the media include butch or femme lesbians and lesbian parents. "Butch" lesbian comes from the idea of a lesbian expressing themselves as masculine by dressing masculine, behaving masculinely, or liking things that are deemed masculine, while "femme" lesbian comes from the idea of a lesbian expressing themselves as feminine by dressing feminine, behaving femininely, or liking things that are deemed feminine.
The Rejected is a made-for-television documentary film about homosexuality, produced for KQED in San Francisco by John W. Reavis. Notable as the first documentary program on homosexuality broadcast on American television, KQED first aired the film on September 11, 1961. Later syndicated to National Educational Television (NET) stations across the United States, it received positive critical reviews.
Historically, the portrayal of lesbian, gay, bisexual, and transgender (LGBT) people in media has been largely negative if not altogether absent, reflecting a general cultural intolerance of LGBT individuals; however, from the 1990s to present day, there has been an increase in the positive depictions of LGBT people, issues, and concerns within mainstream media in North America. The LGBT communities have taken an increasingly proactive stand in defining their own culture, with a primary goal of achieving an affirmative visibility in mainstream media. The positive portrayal or increased presence of the LGBT communities in media has served to increase acceptance and support for LGBT communities, establish LGBT communities as a norm, and provide information on the topic.
"The Boys in the Bar" is the sixteenth episode of the first season of the American situation comedy television series Cheers. It originally aired on January 27, 1983, on NBC in the continental U.S. and on February 10, 1983 in Alaska. It is co-written by Ken Levine and David Isaacs and directed by James Burrows. This episode's narrative deals with homosexuality, coming out, and homophobia. It was inspired by the coming out story of former Los Angeles Dodgers baseball player, Glenn Burke. In this episode, Sam's former teammate, Tom—portrayed by Alan Autry—reveals his homosexuality and Sam slowly becomes supportive of him. The bar's regular customers express their disdain toward Sam's support and fear that because of Sam's support of Tom, the bar will become a place full of homosexuals. The episode's Nielsen ratings at its initial airing were low but improved after subsequent airings on NBC. This episode has received more attention since.
For the January 26th, 1956 episode, Ernie comes this close to saying outright that secretly-closeted Rock Hudson is gay when Kovacs executes a flawless parody of those extended 50's movie trailers: this time, it's Rock Mississippi in The Umbrella Salesman of Ranchipur.
Hot l Baltimore, which featured the first gay couple to appear on U.S. television.
Hot l Hollywood Squares, which featured one of the first gay comedians to appear on U.S. television.
Dick Clement and Ian La Frenais' remains one of the all-time greats.
Gian, who recently joined the show after a stint as the gay cop on Hooperman
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: CS1 maint: unfit URL (link)David Fynn stars as Brett, a gay bartender in NBC's comedy "Undateable."