Russell T Davies: Why aren’t there gay characters in Star Wars?
Queer as Folk creator Russell T Davies has claimed there are “vast empires” of shows where gay people don’t exist.
The former Doctor Who show-runner, who was renowned for his portrayal of gay characters, told Attitude: “Don’t just look at where we are, look at where we’re not.
“We’re gay, so we tend to notice the gay stuff, which means that we can miss the fact that whole nights of TV can sail past without a single gay person in sight.
“There are whole vast empires where we don’t exist – there’s not a single gay person in Star Wars, in Star Trek, in Disney, in Pixar, and this stuff isn’t old, it remains current. There’s still a long way to go.”
He added: “I actually think soaps are in trouble, and we need to be careful – as ratings slide slowly downwards, you can now see a landscape in ten years’ time where they won’t exist any more, or they will be substantially reduced.
“And they contain a vast amount of our gay characters. Without the soaps, you’ll find those stats that count gay visibility on screen will plummet. So I wouldn’t take them for granted.
“If you took away the soaps, then the schedules would be even more empty.”
Davies, who shelved his US TV projects in 2011 after his partner was diagnosed with cancer, is currently working on two eight-part gay-focussed TV series for Channel 4, titled Cucumber and Banana.
