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Bisexuality is a sexual orientation that refers to the romantic and/or sexual attraction towards people of more than one gender (historically towards men and women). Throughout history numerous bisexual characters have appeared in television series. This page focuses on live action television, as opposed to animated productions. Listed characters are either recurring characters, cameos, guest stars, or one-off characters. For the corresponding page for lesbian characters, see the List of television series with lesbian characters.
Having been created as a radio program in 1937 and transitioning to television in 1952, Guiding Light is the oldest television series in the world to feature bisexual characters; Olivia Spencer and Natalia Rivera Aitoro. Olivia was introduced in 1999 and Natalia in 2007, with the two women realizing they are bisexual and beginning a relationship in 2008. [1] In 1990, L.A. Law became the first primetime television series to introduce a recurring bisexual character; C.J. Lamb. [2] [3] In 2015, during The 100's second season, the protagonist Clarke Griffin kissed Lexa, making the series the first in America belonging to one of the "Big Five" networks with a bisexual lead. [4]
For information about fictional characters in other parts of the LGBTQ community, please read the lists of trans, bisexual, non-binary, pansexual, asexual, and intersex characters.
Duration | Title | Character (s) | Notes |
---|---|---|---|
1937–2009 | Guiding Light | Olivia Spencer Natalia Rivera Aitoro | Originally, Olivia and Natalia were enemies and fighting over Gus Aitoro. Olivia, who is suffering from a fatal heart condition, gets Gus' heart following his death. Following the heart transplant, the two women grow closer and end up becoming girlfriends. [1] |
1963–present | General Hospital | Kristina Davis | Kristina is exploring different labels and has not yet decided which applies to her. Previously having only been attracted to men, she is now attracted to a woman. She wonders aloud how her father will react to learning that "one daughter is bisexual" and later refers to her sexuality as "fluid". [5] [6] [7] |
1963–present | Doctor Who | Captain Jack Harkness River Song Clara Oswin Oswald | Both Jack [8] and River [9] are from the 51st century. Clara has been in a relationship with a man and talks about having kissed women. [10] |
1970–2013 | All My Children | Lena Kundera | Lena was the first recurring bisexual character in daytime television. Maggie dated and had sex with several men before committing herself to Bianca Montgomery. [11] [2] |
1972–present | Emmerdale | Charity Dingle Debbie Dingle Robert Sugden | Charity marries Chris Tate and later has an affair with his sister, Zoe. Charity's daughter Debbie has had many relationships with men but becomes seriously involved with friend Jasmine Thomas. Robert begins an affair with Aaron Dingle while engaged to Chrissie White. Although it was unconfirmed whether he was gay or bisexual for a long time, the character has since opened up about his bisexuality and that he is attracted to both, women and men. |
1982–2003 | Brookside | Lindsey Corkhill | Has three marriages on the show, but has a long-term affair with friend Shelley Bower. |
1984–2010 | The Bill | Juliet Becker Debbie McAllister | Detective Constable Juliet Becker sets a precedent with the rest of the force after she reveals that she is bisexual. She reveals that she recently had an affair with a married woman, whose husband reacted violently upon finding out. Juliet eventually begins a relationship with fellow officer Detective Sergeant Debbie McAllister, following the events of McAllister's marriage to the cold Superintendent Tom Chandler. |
1985–present | EastEnders | Sonia Fowler Tony Hills Danny Pennant Steven Beale Diane Butcher Ash Kaur | Sonia leaves the show in a happy relationship with a man (with whom she has a daughter) but had sexual relations with a woman beforehand. Tony has an ongoing relationship with Simon Raymond but has a number of affairs with women during that time. Danny has sexual relationships with both men and women. The buildup to Steven's exit involved in a bisexual love triangle storyline among him, Stacey, and Christian Clarke (John Partridge), who is Jane's gay brother. [12] [13] Diane has had relationships with men and women. Ash is in a relationship with Iqra Ahmed. [14] |
1986–1994 | L.A. Law | C.J. Lamb | C.J. was the first regular bisexual character on a primetime TV show. Her kiss with Abby Perkins in the season 5 episode, "He's a Crowd", was also the first kiss between women on a primetime television series. [2] |
1988–present | Home and Away | Charlie Buckton | Has a relationship with Joey Collins and later with Angelo Rosetta. |
1988–1997 | Roseanne | Nancy Bartlett Beverly Harris | Roseanne's friend Nancy comes out as bisexual and is shown having relationships with both men and women. [15] |
1988–1991 | Midnight Caller | Mike Barnes | The episode "After It Happened" deals with Mike Barnes, a bisexual man, deliberately spreading AIDS to heterosexual women. [16] |
Duration | Title | Character | Notes |
---|---|---|---|
1992–present | Shortland Street | Caroline Buxton | Caroline had a long-running romance with bad boy Greg Feeney. She also had a relationship with Laura Hall. |
1993–1999 | Star Trek: Deep Space Nine | Jadzia Dax Ezri Dax Kira Nerys (alternate universe) | Jadzia and Ezri Dax's relationships with females portrayed as related to previous existence as a male. Alternate-universe Kira portrayed as a hedonistic tyrant. Garak was originally intended as omnisexual by the actor, and many fans still consider him as such, although he never engaged in an 'official' relationship throughout the seasons. |
1993–1999 | Homicide: Life on the Street | Tim Bayliss | Tim explored bisexuality in later seasons of the show. In the first episode concerning his bisexuality, Bayliss flatly stated he was "not gay" and did not formally come out until season 7, but even then he did not want to be deemed "a crusader" on the matter. |
1993–1998 | Babylon 5 | Susan Ivanova | Had romantic relationships with Marcus (male) and Talia (female; more implied than explicit on-screen but later confirmed). |
1995–2001 | Xena: Warrior Princess | Xena Gabrielle Athena | Xena and Gabrielle are possibly lovers; implied from the middle of the series to its end. Hints that Xena may have been sexually intimate with two women before Gabrielle are also present. |
1995–present | Hollyoaks | Craig Dean Kris Fisher Ravi Roy Sarah Barnes Grace Black Peri Lomax | Craig is depicted as straight until he starts an affair with his best friend John Paul McQueen, who is gay. Kris is a self-identified bisexual cross-dresser and has had affairs with both genders, primarily females. Ravi begins a relationship with Nancy but then sleeps with Kris, both of whom were having an affair themselves, causing the three of them to form a short-lived 'love triangle'. When asked about her character's sexuality, Loui Batley discussed Sarah possibly being bisexual. [17] Peri begins a polyamorous relationship, and later comes to the realisation that she is bisexual. [18] |
1996–1997 | This Life | Ferdy | |
1997–2005 | Family Affairs | Adam Sheldrake Karen Ellis Brendan Boulter | Adam Sheldrake is engaged to Gabby Johnson but later has a fling with friend Clive Starr. Karen has engaged to long-time boyfriend Matt who she married but later leaves him to have a relationship with Kelly Hurst. After Kelly dies, Karen reconciles with Matt. Brendan Boulter dates Becky Scott and Melanie Costello, who he eventually marries but has affairs with Sean Steel and a man named Jason. |
1997–2003 | Oz | Chris Keller Tobias Beecher | Keller is a homicidal sociopath; Beecher previously married but fell in love and engaged in a sexual relationship with Keller. |
1998–2004 | Sex and the City | Samantha Jones | |
1998–2006 | Will & Grace | Karen Walker | Karen has shown attraction to both women and men. |
1999–2003 | Farscape | Chiana | Sexuality portrayed as fluid. |
1999–present | Holby City | Bernie Wolfe | Had a long term marriage to a man, they split when she is found working at Holby City hospital by a woman she previously had an affair with during her army days. Serena Campbell has had relationships with men but is in a relationship with Bernie Wolfe |
Duration | Title | Character | Notes |
---|---|---|---|
2000–2004 | Coupling (UK) | Jane | Claims to have slept with 15 women, but seems to be pretending for the attention. |
2000–2005 | Queer as Folk (US) | Hunter Lindsay | Sexuality portrayed as fluid, but can be socially problematic. |
2001–2005 | Six Feet Under | Russel Keith Charles Billy Chenowith | Russel is confused; Keith is primarily gay; Billy is primarily straight. |
2001 | Bob & Rose | Bob | Identifies as gay, though finds the only female he is attracted to is Rose. |
2001–2011 | Law & Order: Criminal Intent | Nicole Wallace | Arch-nemesis of Detective Robert Goren. Appears in the episodes "Anti-Thesis", "A Person of Interest", "Great Barrier", and "Grow". Referred to in the episodes "Pas de Deux", "Slither", and "Renewal". |
2001–2010 | Scrubs | The Todd Elliot Reid Bob Kelso | In "My Lucky Charm" he begins to hit on men, stating 'The Todd appreciates hot, regardless of gender'. Through the series, Elliot shows strong signs of being bisexual. Kelso often speaks of times in his past and hints he may have been with another man. |
2001–2015 | Degrassi: The Next Generation | Paige Michalchuk Miles Hollingsworth Imogen Moreno | Paige has dated many guys and one lesbian. She started to question her sexuality when she became attracted to her female friend Alex. [19] Miles has dated many girls and shows interest in one guy. He started to question his sexuality when he realized he was attracted to Tristan. Imogen is either bisexual or pansexual. Throughout the series, she dates Eli, then Fiona, kisses Adam and then dates Jack. |
2001–2010 | 24 | Mandy | Mandy is a terrorist who appeared sporadically during the show's first, second, and fourth seasons. She was shown having a girlfriend during the first season and a boyfriend in the fourth. [20] |
2002–2006 | Footballers' Wives | Conrad Gates | Discreetly bisexual, Conrad had many female partners but had an affair with struggling gay character, Noah. |
2002 | Firefly | Inara Councilor | Takes a female client in the episode "War Stories" and mentions having done so in the past occasionally. The Councilor is either lesbian or bisexual. [21] |
2002–2004 | Wild West | Mary Trewednack Angela Phillips | They are a couple, but decide the romance has left the relationship and start to date men. |
2003–2010 | Nip/Tuck | Quentin Costa Julia McNamara Kimber Henry Christian Troy Matt McNamara | |
2003–2007 | The O.C. | Alex Kelly Marissa Cooper | Alex and Marissa had a casual romance during part of the series' second season. |
2003–2015 | Peep Show | Jeremy Osbourne | While he usually is seen engaging in opposite sex liaisons, Jeremy starts a relationship with another man in the final season. He also claims he has had sex with more men than Sophie (four). |
2003–2012 | One Tree Hill | Anna Taggaro | Anna was initially in a relationship with Lucas but after they broke up she kissed Peyton. It is later revealed the reason she and her family moved to Tree Hill in the first place was to escape the harassment she faced. Anna was the first recurring bisexual character of color on television. |
2003–present | Arrested Development | GOB Bluth | GOB has hinted at having sex with both men and women throughout the course of the show. Two of his most significant romantic relationships in the show thus far have been with Lucille 2 (Liza Minnelli) and, in Season 4, Tony Wonder (Ben Stiller). |
2004–2009 | The L Word [22] | Alice Pieszecki Jenny Schecter Phyllis Kroll Tina Kennard | Sexuality is portrayed as fluid, but this can be socially problematic as it is often shown as a phase. |
2004–2006 | Joey | Gina Tribbiani | In the season 2 episode "Joey and the Holding Hands", it is implied Gina may be bisexual. |
2004–2012 | Desperate Housewives | Katherine Mayfair | Katherine has a sexual attraction to men, and later for a woman. |
2004–2009 | Battlestar Galactica (2004) [23] | Number Six Number Three / D'Anna Biers Felix Gaeta | Number Three, Number Six and Gaius Baltar have a polyamorous relationship in Season 3. Felix Gaeta's sexuality was addressed in online "webisodes", in which he is shown dating Lt. Hoshi (male) and had a past relationship with a female Cylon. |
2004–2012 | House | Dr. Remy 'Thirteen' Hadley | Openly bisexual, she was seen having casual sex with women and having a serious romantic relationship with the main character Eric Foreman. After they broke up, she then entered into a serious romantic relationship with a woman at one point. |
2005–present | American Dad! | Roger Avery Bullock Principal Lewis | A bisexual alien, Stan's bisexual boss at the CIA, and Steve's Principal who has a "prison wife" whom he has seen outside of prison with a few times, as well as being known as a lady's man. |
2005 | Casanova | Giacomo Casanova | Tries to sleep with a man, only to discover she's a woman and sleep with her anyway. |
2005–present | Grey's Anatomy | Callie Torres Carina Deluca Teddy Altman | Callie is married to George O'Malley for a brief time. She has a sexual relationship with a male doctor before embarking on two consecutive relationships with women. She was identified as bisexual in season 11 episode 5. Carina is involved with Arizona Robbins and Owen Hunt. She later enters into a relationship with Maya Bishop of Station 19. Teddy has appeared on Grey's on and off since season 6. Her most significant on-screen romantic relationships are with Owen Hunt, Henry Burton, and Tom Koracick. In season 16, it is revealed via flashback that Teddy had an affair with her best friend Allison, whose death leads her to join the military. |
2005–2006 | Sugar Rush | Sugar Saint | |
2005–2017 | Bones | Angela Montenegro | Angela is married to a man, and has had a serious relationship with a woman that was rekindled during the course of the show. |
2005–2020 | Supernatural | Chuck Shurley / Carver Edlund / God | Chuck explicitly states he has had some girlfriends and a few boyfriends. |
2005–2014 | How I Met Your Mother | Lily Aldrin | Displays several erotic dreams involving her friend Robin. |
2005–2009 | My Name Is Earl | Stuart Daniels | Became a long-term lover of Kenny James, but demonstrated a strong attraction to women as well several times throughout the series. |
2005–2008 | South of Nowhere | Ashley Davies | Displayed a romantic/sexual attraction to ex-boyfriend Aiden Dennison on more than one occasion, but often identifies as a lesbian. |
2006–2010 | Heroes | Claire Bennet Gretchen Berg | Claire is portrayed as straight, kissing three guys over the course of the first three seasons of the show and having one serious boyfriend, but then in season 4, after being kissed by her female roommate Gretchen, begins to consider that her sexuality might be more fluid than she once thought. She accepts holding Gretchen's hand and starts to do it herself willingly before season 4 ends. The show was canceled before Claire's sexuality was fully explored, though. |
2006–2011 | Torchwood [8] | Captain Jack Harkness Toshiko Sato Ianto Jones Owen Harper Captain John Hart | All main characters sexualities intended to remain fluid. Gwen's sexuality remains ambiguous. Jack and John embody pansexuality to varying degrees, whereas Ianto, Owen, and Tosh more realistically depict 21st-century bisexuals. Tosh has sexual and romantic relationships with men and women, and Owen has sexual relationships with both too. Ianto explicitly acknowledges that he identifies as bisexual in the Torchwood novel Twilight Streets. Also, the actor who played Ianto, Gareth David-Lloyd, stated, "He doesn’t quite strike me as a labelist anyway, but if he were a labelist, he’d probably be bisexual." [24] |
2007–2008 | Dirt | Leo Spiller Julia Mallory | Leo possibly in denial of homosexuality; Julia "only when stoned". |
2007–2013 | Skins | Tony Stonem Cassie Ainsworth Naomi Campbell Mini McGuinness | Tony's sexual behavior is primarily towards women, but he has a one-night stand with Maxxie; it is later revealed through his subconscious that Tony is polysexual. Cassie begins sexual relations with both men and women to spite her boyfriend. In series 3 and 4, Naomi displays attraction to men and women, though her primary relationships are with women. In the later half of series 5, Mini's attraction towards Franky implies she is bisexual, though this attraction is short-lived and has no relevance in series 6. |
2007 | Saul of the Mole Men | Nathaniel Baltimore | |
2007–2010 | The Tudors | George Boleyn Thomas Tallis | |
2007–2012 | Gossip Girl | Chuck Bass Elliot Olivia Burke | Chuck, while primarily portrayed as a promiscuous womanizer, has admitted to kissing guys before. Elliot states explicitly he likes boys and girls and begins a relationship with Eric, who is gay. Olivia Burke kisses Vanessa more than once during their threesome with Dan Humphrey. Unfortunately, Chuck's bisexuality was never explored in the Gossip Girl TV show, which creator Joshua Safran said he regretted. [25] |
2007–2011 | Secret Diary of a Call Girl | Belle/Hannah | |
2008–present | Murdoch Mysteries | Dr Emily Grace | Emily loved fellow suffragette Lillian Moss, whom she planned to move to London with to join the women's suffrage movement there. In previous seasons, she has a romantic relationship with two men. |
2008–2010 | Legend of the Seeker | Cara Mason | Cara is shown in relationships with both men and women. |
2008–2010 | Survivors | Anya | |
2008–2014 | Mord mit Aussicht | Bärbel Schmied Mathilde | Bärbel is bisexual, and a police officer. She falls in love with Mathilde, which confuses Bärbel because she is not a lesbian. Mathilde is bisexual. A carpenter, she states that she is open to relationships with both women and men. They have a short affair in "Waltzing Mathilde" (1x10). [26] After her affair with Mathilde, Bärbel briefly dates and old friend of her, and has a one-night-stand with Timo. |
2009–2011 | Being Erica | Ivan Erica Julianne | Ivan identifies as gay, but then says he feels "put in a box" and comments he thinks gay people also, sometimes, can be 10% straight, and while he is attracted to big, hairy dudes most of the time, he also sometimes finds himself attracted to slender, blonde women. He marries a man on the series but has always wondered what breasts feel like to touch and Julianne lets him touch hers. Erica experiments with bisexuality briefly in one episode, attempting a sexual relationship with her lesbian roommate, Cassidy, but ultimately Erica decides she is straight and her feelings for Cassidy are just feelings of friendship. Julianne mentions that she kissed a girl once, but seems to identify as straight. |
2009–2015 | Glee [27] | Brittany Pierce | Brittany has been described on the show as "fluid" and "bicurious", and in season 5 Santana describes Brittany as "bisexual". The fall 2011 GLAAD report listed her as bisexual. [28] Brittany has kissed most of the boys and girls in school as well as her best friend Santana Lopez and has had serious romantic relationships with Sam Evans, Artie Abrams, and Santana. By season 4, she is comfortable saying she would date men or women. In season 6 she and Santana get married. |
2009–2012 | Make It or Break It | Max Spencer | In episode "What Lies Beneath," Max reveals his bisexuality to Austin and worries about how his female love interest, Payson, would respond. |
2009–2014 | Warehouse 13 | Helena "H. G." Wells | The character explicitly states, "Many of my lovers were men." Another character mentions that H. G.'s relationship with a man ended and that she is dating a woman. |
2009 | Melrose Place (2009) | Ella Simms | Ella has sex with both men and women throughout the series. |
2009–present | Archer | Pam Poovey Spirodon Skorpio Ray Gillette | Pam regularly expresses interest in both genders. Skorpio is the main antagonist in the episode Skorpio , he has a threesome involving chocolate with Lana Kane and Sterling Archer. Ray identifies as gay, but given the opportunity to have sex with co-worker Lana he says, "Nobody's that gay."; was once married to a lesbian as part of a "pray away the gay" program. |
2009–2016 | The Good Wife | Kalinda Sharma | She describes herself as "flexible", the actress who portrays her calls her bisexual, and Cary, a man she is sexually involved in season 5, calls her bisexual to correct Alicia's confusion when Alicia says "I thought she was a lesbian". Alicia asks Kalinda back at the end of season 1 if she is gay, and Kalinda answers "I'm private". Kalinda has had sex with multiple men and women on the series as well as flirtations and discusses how the difference between sex with men and sex with women is like choosing Thai or Italian food; they're both good, just different. |
Duration | Title | Character | Notes |
---|---|---|---|
2010 | Caprica | Clarice Willow | Clarice is a member of a group marriage involving two husbands and several wives. |
2010–2012 | Lip Service | Frankie Alan | |
2010–2013 | Spartacus | Lucretia Saxa | Depicts the Ancient Roman approach to sexual orientation; people have certain social obligations depending on the class (e.g. free citizens expected to marry and have children), but the gender of a person's sexual partners is not seen as particularly notable. |
2010–2013 | Him & Her | Paul | Nearly leaves his wife, Laura, for his lover, Graham. |
2010–2015 | Lost Girl [29] | Bo Tamsin | Because she feeds off of sexual energy, Bo is involved with many human and Fae characters throughout the show. Her three long-term relationships are with two Fae men and a human woman, though in each season she has many sexual partners both female and male. In her character description, Tamsin is described as bisexual. Also seen throughout the series as being attracted to both males and females, including her male police partner and the lead, Bo. |
2010–2015 | Parenthood | Haddie Braverman | Over the first 3 seasons, she had two serious boyfriends and is sexually active with the second boyfriend starting at the end of season 2. She felt strong feelings for both of her boyfriends. She is not on the show for most of season 4 or 5 because she has moved across the country to attend college, but when she returns in the season 5 finale, she brings her "super awesome best friend" with her, whom she is kissing and dating. Her younger brother wondered if kissing a girl made her a lesbian. She "comes out" to her mother as having fallen for this girl, Lauren, but her specific sexual orientation is never mentioned. |
2010–2016 | Rizzoli & Isles | Maura Isles | Says she has never been with a Frenchwoman, implying she has been with other women. |
2010–2017 | Pretty Little Liars | Maya St. Germain Alison DiLaurentis | Maya believed to be a lesbian until she admitted dating a boy at the camp 'True North'. Alison is shown to have had many brief romantic trysts with various men, but was revealed to have kissed her friend Emily several times in the past, as well as saying to Emily in season 5 "I always made you think your feelings for me were totally one-sided, that wasn't true." |
2011–present | Shameless | Monica Gallagher | Monica is interested in men such as Frank and Walter, and also had sex with Clayton Gallagher. However, she has been in a committed relationship with Roberta, a woman, and had a fling with another woman while committed to the hospital after her suicide attempt. Monica is bipolar, and her bisexuality may be a problematic example of representation because of how it is treated as a symptom of her mental illness. Svetlana has sex/relationships with both men and women. Veronica started a polyamorous relationship with her husband and Svetlana. |
2011–2013 | Happy Endings | Jane Kerkovich-Williams | She dated men and women. |
2011–2013 | Whitney | Neal | He started the series dating Lily and they later get engaged. After they break up, he begins a relationship with a man. His sexuality is described as fluid. |
2011–2014 | Suburgatory | Dalia Royce | She is shown to have dated guys and at least one girl. |
2011–2015 | Revenge | Nolan Ross Tyler Barrol | Claims to be "about a three on the Kinsey scale." Tyler dates Ashley Davenport but later seduces a male character. |
2011–2017 | Teen Wolf | Caitlin Jackson Whittemore Brett | Caitlin is a young woman who is first introduced as having been in a relationship with Emily. Caitlin later kisses Stiles and reveals she is bisexual. Jackson was dating Lydia in season 2; in season 6 he was dating Ethan. Brett is a bisexual lacrosse player. |
2011–2019 | Game of Thrones | Oberyn Martell Ellaria Sand Yara Greyjoy | During their visit in King's Land on behalf of Oberyn's brother, Prince Doran Martell, Oberyn and Ellaria are shown engaging in a threesome with Olyvar, a spy for Littlefinger and prostitute usually engaging in homosexual relationships. Yara Greyjoy, queen of the iron island stated that she gets with men or women as the mood hits her. |
2011–present | American Horror Story | Countess Elizabeth Ramona Royale Natacha Rambova Will Drake [30] | All of these characters appear during season 5 titled American Horror Story: Hotel . |
2012–present | Arrow and DC's Legends of Tomorrow | Sara Lance | Sara was in a relationship with Oliver Queen before the boat accident. In season 2, it is revealed she had a relationship with Nyssa al Ghul while with the League of Assassins. In the Arrowverse crossover of 2017 "Crisis on Earth-X" when a Nazi version of her father states why she with the un-pure, she fiercely responds "because I like man and I like women", she has been in a relationship with another woman, Ava Sharpe. |
2013–2017 | East Los High | Camila Barrios | In season 2 episode 1, Camila hooks up with her best friend Jocelyn Reyes and continues this way for a short stint in the following episodes. |
2013–2018 | House of Cards | Frank Underwood | In season 1, it is revealed that as a young man, Frank had a romantic relationship with a male classmate at his military college. Though Frank is married to a woman, Claire Underwood, their relationship is depicted as a political and emotional alliance to which sex is essentially peripheral. It is not until season 2, when a male third party is involved, that any intercourse is implied. Frank's relationship with reporter Zoe Barnes in season 1 is physical but highly calculated, and he is open with his wife about the dalliance and its value to their long-term political objectives. |
2013–2017 | Orphan Black | Delphine Cormier Sarah Manning | Delphine acknowledges that sexuality is a spectrum and that she's never been with a woman before after she begins developing feelings for Cosima and enters a relationship with Cosima. |
2013–2015 | Hannibal | Alana Bloom Hannibal Lecter | Alana is in a relationship with a man in season 2, but marries a woman in season 3. Hannibal is shown having relationships with women as well as being in love with a man and is described by showrunner Bryan Fuller as omnisexual. [31] |
2013–2015 | Hemlock Grove | Destiny Rumancek | Although she is engaged in the later series, in the first series, Destiny has a physical and sexual relationship with Dr. Clementine Chasseur. |
2013–2016 | The Fall | Stella Gibson | Initiates sexual relations with both women and men; does not identify her sexual orientation. |
2013–2018 | The Fosters | Monte Porter | Monte has an ex-husband and at one point kisses Lena. On her online dating profile, Monte describes herself as bisexual. |
2013–2019 | Orange Is the New Black | Piper Chapman Lorna Morello possibly Brook Soso | Sexuality portrayed as fluid. Piper mentions the Kinsey scale, but the word "bisexual" is never used. In season 2, Vee warns Taystee not to be "gay-for-the-stay." This show received backlash for bi-erasure and invalidating bisexuality through its dismissive nature in the way it describes bisexual attraction and treats seemingly bisexual characters, i.e., “it’s just a phase”, or failing to mention the label. |
2013–present | Brooklyn Nine-Nine | Rosa Diaz | Rosa has dated two men on the series, Marcus and Adrien Pimento. In the 99th episode, it is revealed she is bisexual and dating a woman. |
2013–2014 | Witches of East End | Joanna Beauchamp | Joanna had a husband, Victor. While the two were separated, she had a relationship with a woman named Alex in the 1970s. |
2013–2018 | The Tunnel | Elise Wassermann | Elise had sex with men out of practical necessity and has not experienced emotional involvement with any sex partner. Until she met Eryka Klein, Elise had never felt a romantic attraction for someone. She fell in love with Eryka, while Eryka, a lesbian, falls in love with Elise. [32] [33] |
Duration | Title | Character | Notes |
---|---|---|---|
2014–present | Madam Secretary | Blake Moran Kat Sandoval | Blake comes out as bisexual at the end of season 3. [34] Kat is bisexual. [35] |
2014–2020 | The 100 | Clarke Griffin | At the beginning of the show, she sleeps with a male character. In season 2, she kisses a female character. In season 3, she sleeps with two female characters and falls in love with one. This was also confirmed by writer and producer Jason Rothenberg. [36] |
2014–2017 | Black Sails | Eleanor Guthrie Anne Bonny | Eleanor was in a relationship with a woman, Max, at the beginning of season 1. Anne Bonny has a fusional relationship with Jack Rackham, but falls in love with Max in season 2. |
2014–2019 | Broad City | Ilana Wexler Abbi Abrams | Throughout the series, Ilana has relationships with men, women, and non-binary people, and she regularly makes her feelings towards Abbi known. In season 2, she enters a relationship with a woman who looks identical to her. Abbi has relationships with men exclusively until the final season, in which she begins dating a female doctor. |
2014–2019 | Jane the Virgin | Rose Solano Adam Alvaro Petra Solano | Rose dates Emilio, Rafael, and Luisa’s father in season 1, but she dated Luisa in the past. She is bisexual. We learn Adam is bisexual in the episode "Chapter Sixty-Nine", and he dated some boys in the past. In season 4, Petra falls in love with Jane Ramos (aka JR), her lawyer, and after Petra tells what she feels to JR, they start a relationship. |
2014–2015 | Chasing Life | Brenna Carver | A 16-year-old girl who develops feelings for both Kieran, a boy she met in the aftermath of a party, and Greer, a classmate who is an out lesbian. After quickly coming to terms with her simultaneous feelings for both, she attempts to maintain romantic relationships with the two. Although initially reluctant to assign labels to herself, she eventually comes to self-identify as bisexual. |
2014 | Z Nation | Addison "Addy" Carver | In an episode, she develops a bond with a woman called "Dana", despite her feelings for Mack Thompson a male hockey player which throughout the first half of season is her boyfriend. |
2014–2019 | Gotham | Barbara Kean | Has a bisexual relationship with Major Crimes Division Officer Renee Montoya and fiancé Jim Gordon. |
2014–2017 | Halt and Catch Fire | Joe MacMillan | Initiates a season-long sexual relationship with female programmer Cameron Howe in episode 1. In episode 3, seduces the trophy boyfriend of wealthy widow in order to avoid a business deal with her. In episode 7, his ex-boyfriend Simon re-enters his life briefly to inform Joe he has AIDS. |
2014–2020 | How to Get Away with Murder | Annalise Keating | Annalise kisses her ex-girlfriend Eve Rothlow in season 2. It is later revealed they were in a serious relationship during law school. They briefly rekindle their relationship, until Eve finishes her case in Philadelphia and needs to return home. |
2014–2016 | Penny Dreadful | Dorian Gray Ethan Chandler | Sexuality in Victorian-era portrayed as having more freedom. Showrunner John Logan perceives sexuality as fluid and has implied all characters could potentially be depicted as such. [37] |
2015 | Banana [38] | Freddie Baxter | Described by roommate Dean Monroe as being "kind of anything" in reference to his sexuality. [39] He is confirmed as being bisexual by actor Freddie Fox. [40] |
Cucumber [38] | Freddie Baxter | Described by roommate Dean Monroe as being "kind of anything" in reference to his sexuality. [39] He is confirmed as being bisexual by actor Freddie Fox. [40] | |
Other Space | Stewart Lipinski | Stewart pines after his female crewmate Tina Shukshin on the show and mentions to his sister that he has not "had a boyfriend in years". [41] | |
2015–2017 | Code Black | Noa Kean | Mentions having dated both boys and girls. |
2015–2018 | Sense8 | Wolfgang Bogdanow | At the end of series, Wolfgang ends in a relationship with both, Kala and Rajan. |
2015–2019 | Mr. Robot | Tyrell Wellick Dominique DiPierro Darlene Alderson Angela Moss Shayla Nico Others | Although married to Joanna, Tyrell seduces his boss's male secretary to find out who the new CTO candidate is. He is in love with Eliott. [42] Agent Dominique DiPierro refers to heterosexual relationships before her introduction to the series and continues to engage in heterosexual fantasy multiple times via IRC chats. However, throughout the series, she engages exclusively in homosexual physical relationships and expresses a desire to no longer be with men. Darlene Alderson begins the series in a complicated relationship with her boyfriend and engages in repeated casual intercourse with a businessman. Later in the series, she develops a relationship with DiPierro. Angela Moss and Shayla Nico are only seen in heterosexual sexual relationships throughout the series but briefly engage in kissing on another, suggesting they are more flexible in their sexuality outside of this interaction. Another non-consensual homosexual activity is suggested throughout the series from characters who are presumed to be straight. This includes attempted male on male rape in a prison setting and Elliot Alderson's childhood molestation by his father. |
2015–present | Fear The Walking Dead | Althea ("Al") Szewczek-Przygocki Isabelle | Althea is lesbian or bisexual, as is Isabelle. In the episode "The End of Everything" (5x05), Isabelle meets Althea, and before parting ways, she passionately kisses Althea, and Althea reciprocates her kiss. [43] [44] |
Crazy Ex-Girlfriend [45] | Darryl Whitefeather Valencia Perez Maya | Previously divorced from a woman. Upon hanging out with Rebecca and her friends, he starts developing a crush on White Josh. After White Josh kisses him on the cheek, Darryl begins to question his sexuality, eventually realizing during a cardio class he is attracted to both genders. He proudly exclaims to White Josh he is a "both-sexual", and the two of them begin dating. [46] Maya comes out as bisexual in solidarity with Darryl. Valencia began the series in a relationship with Josh Chan, ended the series in a relationship with Beth, and was revealed to have had an almost-romance with Father Brah in high school. | |
Scream | Audrey Jensen Zoe Vaughn | Audrey has had a relationship with Rachael Murray and describes herself as bi-curious. Zoe has a relationship with Noah. Audrey, Zoe, and Noah share a three-way kiss. | |
Schitt's Creek | David Rose Jake | David Rose identifies as pansexual. After he has a brief fling with his female friend Stevie, she tells him she had assumed he only liked "red wine," to which he responds that he also "drinks white wine," and he likes "the wine and not the label." Later in that episode, David's father John explains to Roland that David is pansexual. David later falls in love with his business partner Patrick. David and Stevie also briefly date Jake, a bisexual furniture maker, at the same time. | |
Stitchers | Camille Engelson | She has a male love interest on the show, and is open about having dated at least one woman in the past. | |
2016 | Black Mirror | Kelly Booth | In episode "San Junipero", Yorkie is a lesbian, while Kelly is bisexual and was once married to a man. Yorkie and Kelly fall in love and choose to exist together permanently in San Junipero. [47] [48] |
2016–2017 | Dirk Gently's Holistic Detective Agency | Tina Tevetino | She announced her bisexuality explicitly in the show. |
The Shannara Chronicles | Eretria | Eretria once seduced Wil for information. In season 2, she is in a relationship with Princess Lyria. | |
Conviction | Hayes Morrison | Hayes has complicated relationships with her male ex, Conner, and her female ex, Naomi, especially when they begin to date each other. | |
2016–2019 | Shadowhunters | Magnus Bane Helen Blackthorn | Magnus is an immortal warlock. Upon meeting Alec Lightwood he immediately shows an interest in him and the two eventually begin a relationship. |
2016–2020 | The Good Place | Eleanor Shellstrop | In the season 1 finale, Eleanor says Tahani is a "hot, rich fraud with legs for days" and then confesses, "Side note, I might legit be into Tahani". In season 2, episode 2, Eleanor and Tahani are briefly shown as soulmates in one of the reboots. In the season 3 episode "Janet(s)", Eleanor (in the form of Janet) says that she "would hit this this", while pointing to her Janet-body. She has been confirmed bisexual by Kristen Bell, who plays Eleanor and William Jackson Harper, who plays Chidi. In season 4, when Eleanor asks for the perfect person, it was a man with Tahani's legs. [49] |
2016–present | Legends of Tomorrow | Sara Lance John Constantine Gary Green Charlie/Clotho | Sara has shown her attraction to both sexes several times and is referred to, both directly and indirectly, as bisexual. She is dating a woman, Ava. John flirts with both Leo and Sara as soon as his first episode as a guest on the show in season 3, sleeping with Sara later that episode, and continues to flirt with Gary later on in future episodes. His relationship with a man, Dez, is a major part of his motives in season 4, where he is a regular. Gary has shown his attraction to John Constantine, a man, on several occasions, as well as his attraction to Ava and Mona, two women. |
Lucifer | Lucifer Morningstar Eve | In episode 2, Lucifer wakes up in bed with a woman and a man. In season 2, episode 11, when being interrogated, one of his male exes discussed their sexual relations. At the same time, Eve may be bisexual or lesbian. Although her late husband was Adam and she is focused on Lucifer, when she meets Maze they have "a connection" which Eve mentions in the season 4 finale. [50] | |
This Is Us | William Hill | William married a woman with whom he had a son, Randall. Years after her death, he dated a man named Jessie. He said to Kevin, "I've always loved both men and women," when told he was "gay now." | |
Wynonna Earp | Waverly Earp | Waverly dated a "boy-man", named Champ and later broke up with him, realizing she should not have to lower her dating standards so far. She later begins secretly, at least at first, dating the new police deputy, Nicole Haught. | |
Goliath | Michelle McBride | Callie Senate seduces Michelle McBride and begins an affair with her. [51] | |
The Magicians | Quentin Coldwater Margo Hanson | In season 1, Quentin had a threesome with Margo and his other friend, Eliot. In season 3, he hooks up with Eliot again when they are stuck in past Fillory. In season 4, it is revealed that Quentin wanted to pursue a relationship with Eliot earlier in season 3. In season 3, Margo has a brief interaction with a female Pirate King, whom she calls "hot" and heavily suggests she could sleep with her under different circumstances. | |
2017–2019 | Runaways | Nico Minoru | Karolina is a lesbian [52] and Nico Minoru, who is bisexual, formerly in a relationship with Alex Wilder, now reciprocates Karolina's attraction for her. [53] |
2017–present | Big Mouth | Jay Bilzerian | During season two of ‘’Big Mouth’’, Jay discovers that while also being attracted to women, that he may also be attracted to men, as he enjoyed a kiss that he shared with a male classmate. He continues to learn more about his sexuality in the following episodes by using his pillows whom he defines as either male or female and uses them for sexual pleasure. Jay comes to the ultimate discovery that he is bisexual after enjoying sexual relations with both “male” and “female” pillows |
Money Heist (La Casa de Papel) | Tokyo/Tokio (Silene Oliveira) | Tokyo is bisexual and was dating Rio in season 1 to season 3. She was also seen flirting with hostage Alison Parker in 1x08 and kissed her when she found out that Alison had feelings for Rio. She is also sometimes shown flirting with Nairobi (her close friend) like in season 1, when they got drunk together. | |
Riverdale | Toni Topaz Moose Mason | Toni revealed to Jughead she was "more into girls" in season 2 of Riverdale. In one of the most recent episodes, Toni and Cheryl save a kiss, making them love interests. Mason is closeted and began a brief relationship with Kevin in season 1, they kissed in the finale of season 2. | |
Future Man | Wolf/Torque | In season 2, Wolf/Torque has two husbands and three wives. | |
The Bold Type | Kat Edison | Kat realized she is bisexual when she fell in love with Adena, a lesbian Muslim feminist. [54] |
Duration | Title | Character | Notes |
---|---|---|---|
2018–present | Elite | Rebeka "Rebe" de Bormujo Ávalos Polo Benavent Christian Varela Expósito Valerio Montesinos | Rebe is bisexual. She confesses to Ander in 3x02 she is attracted to girls and guys. Polo is bisexual and polyamorous. He had a relationship with Carla and Christian in season 1 and later has a relationship with Cayetana and Valerio in season 3. He has hooked up with Ander in season 2. Christian's sexuality is undefined, although he hooked up with Polo without Carla being involved meaning he could be bisexual. Valerio is bisexual and polyamorous. He has a relationship with Cayetana and Polo. |
Skam France | Alexis | He told Lucas he does not care if he is dating a girl or a boy, and the creators confirmed Eliott is openly pansexual. He and Lucas fall in love. Alexis is openly bisexual. | |
Skam Italia | Niccolò Fares | Being openly pansexual, he was dating a girl, than he fell in love with a boy. | |
Marvel's Runaways | Nico Minoru | Is initially romantically interested in Alex Wilder, later in a relationship with Karolina Dean | |
Black Lightning | Grace Choi | Anissa is a lesbian superhero [55] [56] while Grace Choi is bisexual and Anissa's love interest. [57] | |
Legacies | Jade Josie Saltzman | Jade is bisexual, and had a relationship with Kai Parker, before revealing her preference of girls over other genders. She then has a budding romance with Josie. [58] [59] Josie is described as pansexual by the actor, Kaylee Bryan (in an interview). She is shown to have multiple relationships or crushes with girls (Hope, Penelope, Jade), as well as a couple of relationships with guys (Landon, Rafael). Hope is bisexual, describing her crush for Josie, and also having a relationship with a girl in an alternate universe. She also has a serious relationship with a guy, Landon. Penelope has a relationship with Josie (a woman) and also has been hinted at hooking up with guys (MG in S.1). | |
You | Peach Salinger | While Peach has been interpreted to be either a lesbian [60] or bisexual, [61] in the novel the series is based on she is a lesbian. [62] | |
Chilling Adventures of Sabrina | Luke Chalfant Nicholas Scratch Carl Tapper Zelda Spellman | Luke is a bisexual warlock and told Ambrose he was in love with him. He was included in the orgy scene with Ambrose, Nick, Prudence, and the witch sisters (1x07). Nicholas is bisexual. He is included in the orgy scene, and in 2x04 is referred to as "an equal opportunity flirt" for flirting with men and women. Carl is either closeted gay or bisexual. Zelda may be bisexual. She and Mambo Marie shared a kiss at the end of season 3. | |
2018–2020 | The House of Flowers | Julián de la Mora Paulina de la Mora | Julián dates both Lucía and Diego; Paulina dates Alejo and marries trans woman María José both before and after her transition. |
2019 | Abby's | Abby | The titular character in the series, a Latina ex-United States Marine Corps sergeant who runs an unlicensed San Diego bar from her backyard home, is an admitted and unabashed bisexual. |
Proven Innocent | Madeline Scott | Madeline dates a male reporter and then is revealed to have been in at least one serious relationship with a woman. She comes out as bisexual to her parents in the 8th episode of the series. | |
2019–present | Good Trouble | Gael | In episode 1, Gael sleeps with Callie and then with a male character later introduced as Brian. Gael confirms he is bisexual in episode 2. |
Roswell, New Mexico | Michael Guerin Isobel Evans-Bracken | Michael's major love interest is a man starting in the pilot episode. | |
The Boys | Queen Maeve/Maggie Shaw | Queen Maeve has been in relationships with Homelander and Elena. At first she is closeted, However later is outed by Homelander as lesbian. Elena then clarifies that Maeve is actually bisexual. [63] [64] [65] | |
In the Dark | Vanessa | Jess is a lesbian veterinarian. She is the roommate and best friend of Murphy Mason. [66] Vanessa is either lesbian or bisexual (she has been with males in the past). [67] Jess and Vanessa are in a romantic relationship and they admit they love each other (1x02). They break up after Jess cheats on Vanessa. | |
Harley Quinn | Harley Quinn Poison Ivy | Harley and Ivy are best friends. After much buildup to Harley and Ivy's relationship, in episode 7 of season 2, "There's No Place to Go But Down," they both kiss after Harley saves Ivy, following their escape from prison. [68] This episode happened after season 1 began a "slow burn journey of self discovery for both of the troubled yet powerful women" in the words of one reviewer. By the end of the season, they officially become a couple. | |
Sex Education | Adam Groff Lily Iglehart | Adam is bisexual. He is in a relationship with Aimee at the start of season 1, but later kisses and pursues Eric. Lily's sexuality is not defined. She mostly shows an interest in men but reciprocates Ola's attraction. |
This section needs expansion. You can help by adding to it.(March 2020) |
Duration | Title | Character | Notes |
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2020 | Avenue 5 | Ryan Clark | Ryan is part of a married throuple with Stan (a man) and Cris (a woman), though their relationship is doing poorly due to his frequent absences. [69] |
2017–2020 | 13 Reasons Why | Charlie St. George | Introduced in season 3, shown to ask out a girl for the homecoming dance in episode 10. Becomes romantically involved with Alex Standall in season 4 after hearing that Alex broke up with Winston. Comes out as bisexual to his father in episode 9 by saying: "I'm not 100% straight. I'm not any percent straight. I'm bisexual, I guess." |
2020 | High Fidelity | Robyn 'Rob' Brooks | Rob, a record store owner in Brooklyn, obsessively dwells on her "Top 5 heartbreaks". She decides to get clarity on why she is "always rejected" by talking with her most significant exes. Four of the five are men, but one is a narcissistic Instagram influencer named Kat. Rob never explicitly discusses her sexuality and everyone in her life appears totally accepting of it. |
2020 | The Queen's Gambit | Beth Harmon | Beth has relationships with men and women |
2020–present | Star Trek: Picard | Raffi Musiker Seven of Nine Bjayzl | Raffi is lesbian or bisexual. Raffi and Seven [70] [71] are shown holding hands in the last episode of season 1, "Et in Arcadia Ego". [72] Bjayzl may be lesbian or bisexual, and in the episode "Stardust City Rag" (1x05), it becomes evident that she and Seven had been in a relationship in the past. [73] |
2020 | Teenage Bounty Hunters | Sterling Wesley | It is not outwardly said that Sterling is bi, but she previously had a long time boyfriend. After she breaks up with her boyfriend, she kisses her classmate April (Lesbian) and they have a romantic relationship. In an interview the actress of Sterling, Maddie Phillips, stated that Sterling is bisexual. |
Early children's programming addressing LGBT-related subject matter includes two episodes of CBS Schoolbreak Special. "What If I'm Gay?" originally aired on March 31, 1987. The episode told the story of a teenage boy struggling to come to terms with his sexuality. It was nominated for three Daytime Emmy Awards, winning for Outstanding Direction in Children's Programming. The 1993 episode "Other Mothers" featured a boy who was afraid that his friends would think he was gay because he has two mothers. The episode was nominated for five Daytime Emmys, winning for Outstanding Writing in a Children's Special, Outstanding Performer in a Children's Special and Outstanding Sound Mixing in a Children's Special. In 1986, HBO broadcast The Truth About Alex, which told the story of a high school athlete who discovers that his best friend Alex is gay.
The media portrayal of LGBT people is the depiction or portrayal of lesbian, gay, bisexual, transgender, queer and intersex people in media. The initialism LGBT is commonly used to include all non-heterosexual sexual orientations and gender identities represented in shorthand. Although the initialism originated in North America, media representation of LGBT communities may be examined on a global scale, with varying degrees of tolerance.
Anime and Western animated shows built upon the representation of LGBTQ characters in the previous decade and that which existed in the years before. The 2000s brought with it Queer Duck, the first animated TV series on U.S. television which featured homosexuality as a major theme, an alien named Roger in American Dad! who had an ambiguous sexuality, and an assortment of other shows. This included the yuri-focused Simoun and Strawberry Panic. This would set the stage for shows to come in the 2010s and in the 2020s which further increased LGBTQ representation in animation.
Continuing from the 2000s, the 2010s were a decade which would change LGBTQ representation in animation going forward in a significant way, especially in Western animation, not seen before, whether in the 1990s or anytime prior. Most prominently, the show Steven Universe, created by Rebecca Sugar, began airing on Cartoon Network in 2013, building upon her work on Adventure Time in the years prior. Apart from Steven Universe, the well-regarded Wandering Son, with an assortment of transgender characters, would air on Japanese television. GLAAD highlighted LGBTQ+ characters in shows such as Archer, Allen Gregory, South Park, BoJack Horseman, DreamWorks Dragons, and Venture Bros. in their yearly "Where We Are in TV" reports. 2018 and 2019 would be particularly significant for LGBTQ+ representation. For example, the series finale of Adventure Time featured a kiss between two female characters, the premiere of She-Ra and the Princesses of Power which includes various characters which could be read as "fluidly on the gender and sexuality spectrum, and the wedding between Ruby and Sapphire in Steven Universe. The animated series that premiered in this decade would set the stage for those which premiered in the 2020s.
In the early 2000s, LGBTQ+ representation in U.S. animation faltered, with under-representation of gay characters through the Fall 2000 television season for all broadcast shows, with trend continuing until at least 2003. It would not be until 2005 that GLAAD would began their annual “Where We Are on TV” report" starting its continuing effort to compile statistics on characters in the LGBTQ+ community, and other marginalized groups. GLAAD, for their part, bemoaned the lack of LGBT representation. They noted in the regular 2006–2007 season, LGBTQ+ characters only comprised 1.3% of all regular characters on major broadcast networks. In a report the next year, they noted in the 2007–2008 season, the FOX network only featured LGBT characters in animated comedies like The Simpsons and American Dad. In a report for the following year, GLAAD assessed the "considerable" LGBTQ+ representation in animated primetime programming," citing shows such as The Simpsons, American Dad, Sit Down, Shut Up, The Goode Family, Rick & Steve: The Happiest Gay Couple in All the World, and Drawn Together, even as they had their reservations about existing LGBTQ+ characters on television. In later years, GLAAD painted a bleaker picture, noting that no black LGBT characters were regular characters on television networks, again noting American Dad, The Simpsons, and Rick & Steve: The Happiest Gay Couple in All the World. They stated that most animated LGBT characters were on FOX, lamenting that while South Park historically had LGBT characters and storylines, it could be "hit or miss" like Family Guy.
Pansexual people have a sexual, romantic or emotional attraction towards people regardless of their biological sex or gender identity. While pansexuality is at times viewed as a sexual orientation in its own right, at other times it's viewed as a branch of bisexuality, to indicate an alternative sexual identity. This page examines pansexual characters in fictional works as a whole, focusing on characters and tropes in cinema and fantasy.
Lesbians are homosexual women. The word lesbian is also used for women in relation to their sexual identity or sexual behavior, regardless of sexual orientation, or as an adjective to characterize or associate nouns with female homosexuality or same-sex attraction. This page examines lesbian characters in fictional works as a whole, focusing on characters and tropes in cinema and fantasy.
For many years adult animation in the United States, especially television series have featured LGBTQ characters. This includes series such as The Simpsons, Family Guy, American Dad!, Drawn Together, Bob's Burgers, Allen Gregory, Venture Bros., Star Trek: Lower Decks, Futurama, The Awesomes, Brickleberry, and other series.