Reader Question: Do you think it’s marketable to write leading characters who are gay?

Let me cut to the chase: Write what you want to write. Write characters who you find compelling. Write stories for which you have passion.

That is ALWAYS the bottom line. Life is short. Write what you love.

That’s not only good advice in terms of having a more fulfilling creative experience with your storytelling, it also means it’s more likely what you produce will pop up off the page for a reader precisely because of your passion, flowing into and through your words.

That said, let’s put on our collective producer’s hat and see what emerges relative to this question: Are gay characters marketable in today’s Hollywood?

There have been a number of critically and commercially successful movies featuring lead characters who are gay and/or feature LGBT themes. A short list:

• American Beauty
• As Good As It Gets
• The Birdcage
• Brokeback Mountain
• Carol
• Dallas Buyers Club
• Dog Day Afternoon
• The Imitation Game
• In & Out
• The Kids Are All Right
• Milk
• Philadelphia
• The Talented Mr. Ripley

That’s just off the top of my head, there are plenty more. The fact there have been successful movies featuring gay characters means productions companies and financiers, and even Hollywood movie studios, have been and continue to be interested in these type of stories. As long as they feel they can find an audience, sell the movie to that audience, and make money off such a project, you can figure there would be some level of interest.

Then again as with a study from earlier this year — GLAAD report card finds Hollywood films ‘lag far behind’ — there is, if not overt resistance, at least reluctance on the part of Hollywood to fully embrace LGBT characters in movies. That’s on the film side. In the world of TV, those numbers appear to be changing. Example: 57 Netflix Shows With Awesome LGBT Characters.

It makes sense TV would be more responsive to casting a wider variety of characters because with pay cable and streaming services, series can survive and even thrive servicing niche audiences. Not to suggest LGBT characters can only play to small audiences, that’s not my point at all, but rather networks will be more willing to take what they perceive to be ‘risks’ because they don’t need to draw as many eyeballs to be profitable.

So if one were to make creative decisions about what to write based solely on what we surmise wearing our producer’s hat, there is some conventional wisdom which appears to be in play in Hollywood’s offices that results in fewer roles for gay characters in movies.

But as I say, there have also been successful LGBT movies and at the end of the day, studios and producers care more about profits than anything else.

And winding back to my original point: If you have a story / stories which feature gay characters in lead roles and you think you’ve got a great story to tell, write it! Like The Imitation Game by Graham Moore, if the script kicks ass, someone will respond to it, and it will get made.

How about you, GITS readers? Do you think Hollywood is receptive to scripts featuring LGBT characters? Do you have any hesitation to write a screenplay in that space? Head to comments with your thoughts.