In 1999, Russell T. Davies (It’s a Sin) created Queer as Folk, a daring new British series that focused on the lives of three gay men and their queer friends. The show was groundbreaking not only because it centered on queer characters, but also because it depicted these people as flawed, three-dimensional beings. It was also pretty brazen when it came to nudity and sexual content. One year later, the uneven but equally bold American version debuted on Showtime and ran for five seasons.
Now, over 20 years later, Davies has entrusted the reboot to writer Stephen Dunn (Closet Monster), and the results are an inclusive, authentic new version where representation is at the forefront. Dunn continues the tradition of messy queer characters trying to navigate their lives, often failing miserably.
The setting is New Orleans, and the first episode does a masterful job of character introduction as well as bonding these folks together as they attempt to deal with a horrific tragedy, a shooting at the local gay bar. Over the course of eight episodes, we are treated to a mosaic of queer humans, mirroring the LGBTQ community today living their unapologetic out lives.
The dynamic new cast is led by Devin Way as the archetypal Queer fuck-up, Brodie, who returns home from med school. He almost immediately bonds with Mingus (Fin Argus), a 17-year-old drag queen wannabe who has an atypical encouraging mom (the amazing Juliette Lewis). Brodie’s brother, Julian (Special’s Ryan O’Connell, also a writer on the show), is a gay man with cerebral palsy finally coming out of his geek shell. Their somewhat supportive mother is exceptionally played by Sex and the City’s Kim Cattrall.
Brodie’s bestie, Ruthie (the captivating Jesse James Keitel), is a trans party-girl who is trying to reform. Ruthie is coupled with non-binary Shar (CG) who is pregnant with twins via Brodie’s sperm donation. And that’s just a tiny bit of the plot…
The show is peppered with a terrific supporting cast of up-and-coming out actors.
Awards Daily had a blast video chatting with Jesse James Keitel and CG (paired) as well as Fin Argus and Ryan O’Connell (paired) on junket day about the importance of the series as well as their feelings about representation, gender identity, sexual orientation, and the hopes for season two. Keitel offers, “There’s some opportunity here for some truly, never-before-seen queer storytelling.”
Queer as Folk premieres June 9, 2022, on Peacock.