Out Actors Bryan Batt, Chris Colfer and Jesse Tyler Ferguson Nominated for Screen Actors Guild Awards
December 17, 2009
Several talented out television actors woke up to exciting news this morning as nominations were announced for the 16th annual Screen Actors Guild Awards. Bryan Batt, who plays Sal Romano, a closeted gay man in the 1960s, was nominated along with the rest of his Mad Men castmates for Outstanding Performance by an Ensemble in a Drama Series. The cast of out creator Alan Ball’s hit LGBT-inclusive series True Blood was also nominated in the same category.
Jesse Tyler Ferguson and his Modern Family castmates are nominated for a SAG Award
In the Outstanding Performance by an Ensemble in a Comedy Series category, Chris Colfer and the cast of Glee were nominated, as were Jesse Tyler Ferguson and the cast Modern Family. On the hit new comedies, Colfer plays Kurt Hummel, an openly gay high schooler, and Ferguson plays Mitchell Pritchett, a gay man who recently adopted a baby with his partner, Cameron (played by Eric Stonestreet). Also nominated in this category were the cast of The Office, which features Oscar Nuñez as gay accountant Oscar Martinez.
Hot off her Golden Globe nomination earlier this week, Sigourney Weaver received a SAG Award nomination for her role as the grieving mother of a gay son in the Lifetime TV movie, Prayers for Bobby.
In film, the cast of Precious: Based on the Novel “Push” by Sapphire was nominated for Outstanding Performance by a Cast in a Motion Picture, including Paula Patton as Ms. Rain, the lesbian teacher who saves Precious
Betty White will be honored with the SAG Lifetime Achievement Award
from her abusive mother. Recent Golden Globe nominee Colin Firth was nominated for Outstanding Performance by a Male Actor in a Leading Role for his role as George Falconer, a grieving gay professor in Tom Ford’s directorial debut, A Single Man.
Also of interest to her countless gay fans, beloved Golden Girl Betty White will be honored with the 46th Annual Lifetime Achievement Award. The Screen Actors Guild Awards will be broadcast live on TNT and TBS on Saturday, January 23, 2010.
Related Posts:Exclusive Video: Michelle Paradise, J. Karen Thomas & Colette Divine Discuss Being Out in Hollywood
October 30, 2009
Michelle Paradise, the creator, writer and star of Exes and Ohs on Logo, and J. Karen Thomas and Colette Divine, partners of over 12 years and the co-stars of the PowerUp film Itty Bitty Titty Committee, speak to GLAAD about their experiences as lesbian members of the Hollywood creative community. Paradise was a speaker earlier this month at GLAAD and SAG’s Out in Hollywood panel discussion. Stay tuned for more GLAAD exclusives with out players in Hollywood.
Related Posts:Exclusive Video: Wilson Cruz and Jason Stuart Discuss Being Out in Hollywood
October 27, 2009
Wilson Cruz, the beloved star of My So-Called Life who recently appeared alongside Drew Barrymore in He’s Just Not That Into You, and Jason Stuart, Chairman of the Screen Actors Guild LGBT Committee, give GLAAD exclusive inside information on how to navigate Hollywood as an out actor. The two were speakers earlier this month at GLAAD and the SAG’s Out in Hollywood panel discussion. Stay tuned for more GLAAD exclusives with out players in Hollywood.
Related Posts:Video From the GLAAD/SAG “Out In Hollywood III” Panel Discussion
October 19, 2009
Recently we posted photos from Out In Hollywood III: The Rise of the LGBT Actor, a panel discussion sponsored by GLAAD and the Screen Actors Guild (SAG). Today, we are pleased to present a short video from the event in which the panelists discuss what advice they would give to up-and-coming LGBT actors.
Click below for video:
The Stars Come Out for GLAAD & SAG’s Out in Hollywood Panel
October 8, 2009
Last night in Los Angeles, a packed house turned out to celebrate National Coming Out Month as GLAAD partnered with the Screen Actors Guild (SAG) to present Out in Hollywood III: The Rise of the LGBT Actor, a panel featuring notable out actors, producers, directors and casting directors discussing their experiences being openly LGBT in the industry.
Doria Biddle, co-host of The Frank DeCaro Show on Sirius/XM Radio, moderated the event which included Emmy-winning director Paris Barclay, casting directors Tammara Billik and Dan Shaner, and Academy Award-winning producer Dan Jinks. The LGBT actors on the panel were: Bryan Batt (Mad Men), Candis Cayne (Dirty Sexy Money), Wilson Cruz (He’s Just Not That Into You), Jesse Tyler Ferguson (Modern Family), Michelle Paradise (Exes and Ohs), and Jonathan Slavin (Better Off Ted). Also speaking at the event were GLAAD President Jarrett Barrios, SAG Interim National Executive Director David White, SAG Secretary-Treasurer Amy Aquino, and SAG LGBT Committee Chairman Jason Stuart.
Stayed tuned as we’ll be posting video soon. In the meantime, check out the photos and quotes below:
“Until everyone is free, the experiment of America is not succeeding. We all
want opportunity.” ~ Bryan Batt
From left: Jonathan Slavin, Wilson Cruz, Jesse Tyler Ferguson, and Bryan Batt
“There’s a movement going on and I can’t separate my personal from my work.
To give in to bigoted ideals is not fair to me…If you’re not ready to be out, then you’re not helpful to the cause and you’re not doing me any favors” ~ Wilson Cruz
From left: Dan Shaner, Tammara Billik, Jonathan Slavin, Wilson Cruz, Jesse Tyler Ferguson, Doria Biddle, Candis Cayne, and Paris Barclay
“They created a quantum shift in the world.” ~ Tammara Billik on the impact of
actors who were publicly outed, like Neil Patrick Harris and T.R. Knight.
From left: Jesse Tyler Ferguson, Bryan Batt, Candis Cayne, Michelle Paradise, Dan Jinks, Paris Barclay, and Doria Biddle
“As a community, we’re always concerned when things are bad. We should also
write in when things are good.” ~ Paris Barclay, on using our voice to advocate
for the out images we support.
Interview with Out Actor Jason Stuart
August 10, 2009
As the conversation continues about whether actors can be out in Hollywood and still be cast in roles that are either LGBT or straight, the answer is ‘yes’ for out actor-comedian Jason Stuart. He guest stars tonight on TNT’s hit The Closer as the owner of a storage facility that discovers a dead body.
A character actor, Stuart has been showing his range lately: He will pop up in an upcoming episode of the FX series It’s Always Sunny in Philadelphia as an event director, and later in the Catherine Hicks/Greg Evigan thriller The Truth About Layla as a police officer.
Given the challenges faced by actors who choose to live openly and honestly, Stuart created and is national chair of the Screen Actors Guild LGBT Actors Committee. The committee encourages the auditioning and casting of out actors while offering a network of support to these actors.
Jason Stuart with Kyra Sedgwick on the set of "The Closer"
In an exclusive interview, Stuart spoke to glaadBLOG about being an out performer in 2009.
Does being an openly gay actor in Hollywood hinder the chance of lucrative career?
A big fat no. I have been out for 16 years and just played a half dozen really different roles in the last year, such as a priest, an event manager, a male nurse, a cop, and of course the manager of a storage unit business on The Closer. So the climate has changed from my experience pre-Ellen. Yes, there are certainly challenges at times, but to me it’s a dream come true to get to be working actor at a business I love.
Have you noticed a disparity between roles written for gay men opposed to openly gay women?
There does seem to be more gay male roles than lesbian roles. But I think that also reflects that there always more roles for men than women period. This is an issue the SAG LGBT Actors Committee addresses. We need to support our out lesbian sisters in getting more roles and having more visibility.
Do gay decision makers in Hollywood support out gay actors?
Regardless if they’re gay or not, I think there are decision makers who don’t care if actors are gay and they just want to make a great film or TV show. There are 500 channels on TV, let’s show the powers-that-be that gay means ratings and money in their pockets.
Now that the climate seems better for character actors to be out, when will it be okay for out leading men?
Pre-Ellen I couldn’t get arrested as a character actor in TV or film. I would work maybe once or twice a year as an actor, and I was lucky to be a stand-up comedian in addition to being an actor. From stand-up I learned first hand the mainstream public just wants to laugh and see good stories. Now I am fortunate to work all the time.
NO H8
Why can’t we just fast forward and support the leading man or woman who chooses to come out and make him or her the next big thing? After a while it will not matter. History shows this. Twenty years ago you would never see a Black woman as a judge on TV, now it’s common place. Lets learn from the past.
With actors feeling more comfortable being out in the workplace, and our increased visibility in the media, are we edging closer to equality?
We’ll have equality as soon as we as gay Americans stand up and be counted. I’m not talking about the upcoming U.S. Census, but that’s also a start. I’m talking about living our lives openly and honestly and showing the world who we are. At lunch last week, my best friend Alexandra Paul—my Grace—kissed her husband hello in a public restaurant. She didn’t have to look around first to see who was watching. I’ve learned to act the same way with my boyfriend. Well, I will as soon as I get one!
For more information about Stuart and a list of his upcoming stand-up performances, check out http://www.jasonstuart.com
Related Posts:VIDEO: Black LGBT Media Images Explored
March 26, 2009
Members of the entertainment community came together recently to discuss the state of African American LGBT images in the media. And with The Wire, Noah’s Arc and The L Word all part of television history, these images are slimmer than ever. Thanks to our friends at Screen Actors Guild, the 90-minute panel is now available for viewing — and in HD — right here at glaadBLOG.
“Knocking Down the Door: Black LGBT Images in Media” was a standing-room only event that took place at Screen Actors Guild, sponsored by GLAAD and the National Black Justice Coalition. The panel was co-sponsored by SAG’s LGBT Actors Committee and the Beverly Hills/Hollywood Branch of the NAACP.
The panel began with opening remarks from SAG Interim Executive Director David White, and featured Deondray Gossett and Quincy LeNear, the creative duo behind The DL Chronicles; actor/director/writer Maurice Jamal (Dirty Laundry, The Ski Trip); performer J. Karen Thomas, founding member of the SAG LGBT Actors Committee; TV personality Marcellas Reynolds; performer and trans activist Ashley Love, host of the online series LGB to the T; actor and NAACP Image Award nominee Sonja Sohn (The Wire); and Willis Edwards, member of the NAACP National Board of Directors. The event was moderated by Rashad Robinson, GLAAD Senior Director of Media Programs and featured a special appearance by Alice Huffman, President of the California State NAACP.
To read more about the panel, check out this post, or just sit back and watch it for yourself here:
Special thanks to Kevin Curran, Screen Actors Guild
Crossroads: The Intersection of Black & LGBT Images
February 13, 2009
With both The Wire and Noah’s Arc now part of television history, there are currently — and depressingly — few on-screen television characters who are both gay and black.
Marcellas Reynolds and Sonja Sohn
On the eve of the 100th anniversary of the NAACP and the 40th NAACP Image Awards, the lack of African American LGBT representation was the crux of a forum hosted in Los Angeles this week by GLAAD and the National Black Justice Coalition. “Knocking Down the Door: Black LGBT Images in Media” was a standing-room only event that took place at the Screen Actors Guild, co-sponsored by SAG’s LGBT Actors Committee and the Beverly Hills/Hollywood Branch of the NAACP.
The evening began with a historical video retrospective of black and LGBT images produced by Deondray Gossett and Quincy LeNear, the creative duo behind The DL Chronicles. The two were also part of the evening’s lively panel discussion alongside actor/director/writer Maurice Jamal (Dirty Laundry, The Ski Trip); performer J. Karen Thomas, founding member of the SAG LGBT Actors Committee; TV personality Marcellas Reynolds; performer and activist Ashley Love, host of the online series LGB to the T; actor and NAACP Image Award nominee Sonja Sohn (The Wire), and Willis Edwards, member of the NAACP National Board of Directors. The event was moderated by Rashad Robinson, GLAAD Senior Director of Media Programs and featured remarks from SAG Interim Executive Director David White and Alice Huffman, President of the California State NAACP.
PSA Featuring Michael & Xavier
The forum explored potential reasons behind the under-representation and how this history of invisibility may have affected voting on California’s Proposition 8. Apropos, the 30-second commercial from GettoKnowUsFirst.org featuring the African American family headed by Michael and Xavier was shown to the audience. The spot ran in California television markets during the inauguration, Super Bowl, and the NAACP Image Awards. The absence of these kind of images on television, the panelists suggested, makes the idea of someone being gay and black something foreign and strange to many in the African American community. “Most communication is non-verbal. Whether it’s in a film or on TV or in a commercial, we’re very affected by what we see,” said panelist J. Karen Thomas. “So just by having an image of a black gay, bisexual or lesbian, it alters your awareness and your imagination of what can be possible.”
The panelists agreed that African American representation, LGBT or not, is influential. “When I first saw A Different World and The Cosby Show, I thought, ‘I can go to college,’” admitted Deondray Gossett. “These images really affected the way I thought about the future. I think these images are absolutely essential. If it’s done well, TV can shape young minds.”
"Knocking" panel audience
Featuring black LGBT representation provides a necessary and accurate reflection of the African American community. The panelists, like GLAAD, understand the impact the entertainment industry has on America and the world, and all are working to not only help the industry understand that responsibility, but to realize that diversity and inclusion is also good business.
