Perhaps most importantly, this list should be taken as a reminder that despite great progress in the realm of representation, there is still plenty of work to be done. They're rarely central to American queer storytelling - less than a tenth of the characters on this list were the protagonists of their movies and shows. But these 100 names are clearly exemplary of the way characters of color have more often than not been relegated to being boyfriends and girlfriends, sidekicks and best friends. It's not exhaustive by any means we could continue adding plenty of names to the list, some of which are mentioned below in their co-stars' writeups. It is also an indictment of the lily-white vision of gay Americans mainstream media has perpetuated for decades.
It is a celebration of the writers, directors, producers and performers who have nevertheless found ways to tell diverse stories. This list is an attempt to broaden the examples we talk about when we discuss queer representation in entertainment. The common factor among all these works: a decidedly limited color palette. We think of Jeffrey Tambor in Transparent and Matt Bomer in The Normal Heart. We think of the fearless performances of Hilary Swank in Boys Don't Cry and Jared Leto in Dallas Buyers Club. Queer as Folk and The Kids Are All Right. When we think of LGBTQ media representation, the examples we think of have one thing in common.
