2019 was the most queer-friendly year in American television: 10 percent of all recurring characters were LGBTQ+, according to a report by GLAAD. In this list, we celebrate the characters who broke ground and brought complexity to queer identities on screen, proving that the storylines of LGBTQ people do not have to rest entirely on their sexuality or gender. In addition, the characters on this list reflect the real and changing experience of what it means to be queer today: an identity that is not always overt, can be multi-faceted and eludes rigid labels.
Annalise Keating (Viola Davis), How to Get Away with Murder
The protagonist of How to Get Away with Murder, Annalise Keating (Viola Davis) is first and foremost an ambitious and highly respected attorney, as well as a dutiful university professor. In the series, she chooses five of her students to help take on a convoluted murder case and along the way, blurs the line between authority and friendship. Deeply complex, Keating has sexual relations with both men and women, a fact that adds to the intriguing nuance of the character without defining the entire role. In 2015, Davis won a Primetime Emmy award for Outstanding Lead Actress in a Drama Series.
Dr. Nico Kim (Alex Landi), Grey’s Anatomy
In 2015, Dr. Nico Kim (Alex Landi) became the first gay surgeon character on Grey’s Anatomy, fifteen seasons into the cult classic. Although it took them long enough, Dr. Nico Kim is the Slaysian (gay Asian) character we have been starved off since basically forever. His romance with surgical resident Levi Schmitt exemplifies the complexity of workplace romances and is particularly significant because Asian characters still only make up around one percent of Hollywood’s leading roles. Alex Land is currently playing a recurring role on the comedy-drama Insatiable.
Pray Tell (Billy Porter), Pose
Cast for a part that did not exist before his audition, Pray Tell (Billy Porter) single-handedly brought ‘80s New York City ballroom announcer realness to FX’s Pose. Always manifesting the highest of energies, Pray Tell is a friend and mentor to many of the series’ main characters and serves as the final, omnipresent word to the show’s many feuds. Often suffering in silence and putting others before himself, Porter’s character deserves a spot on this list for epitomizing the spirit of “chosen families” in the LGBTQ community and for showcasing the quiet dignity behind the promiscuously stereotyped members of the AIDS generation. In 2019, Porter became the first openly gay man to win a Primetime Emmy for Outstanding Lead Actor in a Drama Series for his role as Pray Tell.
Candy Ferocity (Angelica Ross), Pose
This year, Candy Ferocity helped bring attention to the epidemic of trans murders at a time when the homicide rate for the community is increasing; in 2019, more than 30 trans women were assassinated in the United States alone. Ross’ at times hilarious and at times heart-wrenching performance on Pose deserves a spot on this list because it brought urgency to a national pandemic in an honest and dutiful manner.
Sophia Burset (Laverne Cox), Orange Is the New Black
A trans woman played by a trans woman (as things should always be), Sophia Burset became a window into the transphobia rampant in the criminal justice system. On season three of Orange is the New Black, Burset is locked up in solitary confinement as viewers witness her tragic and cruel demise as correctional officers consistently fail to provide her gender-affirming hormones, causing irreparable physical and mental damage. The role of Burset gave Cox the platform she needed to advocate for trans issues, and she won a Daytime Emmy for her MTV documentary “The T Word,” which explored trans youth identity.
Nomi Marks (Jamie Clayton), Sense8
Among the series’ main characters, Nomi Marks is a lesbian trans woman, hacktivist and political blogger who helps the other members of the Sense8 possy with her techincal saavy. Her tender and loyal marriage to Amanita Caplan showed a much-needed happy, multi-racial Queer partnership that we desperately needed. Clayton told Collider that she auditioned for the role of Marks because the series’ director, Lana Wachowski, is also trans and would allow Clayton to play a trans character, a rarity in Hollywood.
Jamal Lyon (Jussie Smollett), Empire
Empire’s Jamal Lyon is a talented musician who struggles throughout the show to get his father’s approval, who is hostile towards Lyon because of his sexuality. Nonetheless Lyon’s mother, Cookie (Taraji P. Henson), ensures is supportive and always loving, uplifting the character throughout the seasons. Lyon’s presence on screen was important and radical because it shows the nuanced relationship between an LGBTQ person of color and his family, at a time when Black+Brown parents are stereotyped as being absolutely intolerant of their gay kids. Although Jussie Smollett’s hate crime controversy got him booted off the show in 2019, the impact of Lyon’s character is undeniable.
Unique Adams (Alex Newell), Glee
Originally cast for two episodes, Alex Newell was one of thousands of aspiring actors who submitted a video to The Glee Project for a chance to appear on the popular show. However, Unique Adams, Newell’s character, was so well received by fans that he was asked to return to the show for its fourth season. Unique Adam’s radical presence on screen as a plus-sized, black and femme queer was lauded by many LGBTQ people and scrutinized by some conservatives; Fox News host Bill O’Reilly once said of Newell that his character promoted “alternative lifestyles.”
Jules Vaughn (Hunter Schafer) , Euphoria
Julez’s character in the HBO teen drama Euphoria is nothing short of revolutionary for the mere fact that Julez’s trans personhood is not articulated until several episodes in, making her gender identity only a facet of who she is. In addition, her platonic/romantic interactions with Rue (Zendaya) epitomized what a true queer relationship can look like: multi-fasceted and not solely based on the logistical in and outs of sex. Julez is on this list because of the depth that her character conveys, as well as the often complicated relationship she has to her own desires as a young trans person.
Lionel Higgins (DeRon Horton), Dear White People
The nerdy college journalist-turned-advocate Lionel Higgins’ (DeRon Horton) plot line revolves around the young writer’s attempts to find his place as a black storyteller in a PWI (predominantly white institution) and articulate his own sexuality. In the first season, he battles with the notion of objectivity when he realizes that he can help champion the causes of the university’s black community. As the episodes progress, the audience sees Higgins’ confidence grow as he gradually leans into his queer identity, showing a realistic portrayal of the “coming out” process for many young people today.
