'Too gay' 2 -- follow-up on Newsweek essay flap (PW, VAR)

By Gary North

You'll recall Ramin Setoodeh wrote an essay late last month for Newsweek suggesting that audiences can't accept gay actors playing straight roles. That triggered all sorts of reactions, including a defense by musical star Kristin Chenoweth of her Broadway co-star Sean Hayes, a commentary in The Hollywood Reporter by Oscar-winning writer Dustin Lance Black and the president of the Gay & Lesbian Alliance Against Defamation, and a call by "Glee" creator Ryan Murphy for a boycott of Newsweek. Subsequently, the Screen Actors Guild weighed in on the matter, blasting the article for suggesting audiences aren't sophisticated enough to see beyond an actor's sexual orientation (or race or politics or religion) and for impugning the integrity and craft of professional actors. And then came this: Murphy reports that he invited the offending essayist (who himself is gay) to visit the set of "Glee," a show about acceptance -- and the writer accepted.

Related Links

'Glee' creator says Newsweek commentator accepts invite to visit set (PW)
SAG blasts Newsweek article (VAR)
Previous reports: Too gay to play straight? (LAT, THR, NW)