Jennifer Beals credits Trump election for 'The L Word' sequel
Wed. July 12, 2017 1:51 PM by OnTopMag.com
Showtime has announced that it is developing a sequel to its groundbreaking lesbian drama The L Word.
The show about a group of lesbians living in Los Angeles ran for six seasons (2004-2009) on the premium cable network.
According to Entertainment Weekly, co-creator Ilene Chaiken will return to executive produce the series. Stars of the original show, Jennifer Beals, Katherine Moenig and Leisha Hailey, will also executive produce and appear in the show.
Beals, who played Bette Porter in the series, told EW that the election of President Donald Trump served as a catalyst for the sequel.
"The election happened," Beal said. "I remember I was in South Dakota watching the returns come in and I texted Ilene and I said, 'We need to do something.' She said, 'Let's get together and talk about it.' So we were spitballing about what to do and I said our skillset is storytelling and I think we need to tell stories and certainly in an atmosphere of increasing hatred towards the LGBT community and frankly anyone who's categorized as 'other,' stories exploring the complexities of friendship and love are all that more crucial. Representation of everything. You can't go backward. I would love to see the show continue to mine its original themes of friendship and love and community and additionally I'd like it to go a little further and challenge heteronormalcy."
"I learned what activism is through The L Word and that was life-changing," she added.
The show about a group of lesbians living in Los Angeles ran for six seasons (2004-2009) on the premium cable network.
According to Entertainment Weekly, co-creator Ilene Chaiken will return to executive produce the series. Stars of the original show, Jennifer Beals, Katherine Moenig and Leisha Hailey, will also executive produce and appear in the show.
Beals, who played Bette Porter in the series, told EW that the election of President Donald Trump served as a catalyst for the sequel.
"The election happened," Beal said. "I remember I was in South Dakota watching the returns come in and I texted Ilene and I said, 'We need to do something.' She said, 'Let's get together and talk about it.' So we were spitballing about what to do and I said our skillset is storytelling and I think we need to tell stories and certainly in an atmosphere of increasing hatred towards the LGBT community and frankly anyone who's categorized as 'other,' stories exploring the complexities of friendship and love are all that more crucial. Representation of everything. You can't go backward. I would love to see the show continue to mine its original themes of friendship and love and community and additionally I'd like it to go a little further and challenge heteronormalcy."
"I learned what activism is through The L Word and that was life-changing," she added.
Article provided in partnership with On Top Magazine