Arts & Entertainment
SPRING ARTS 2018 TV: Small screen delights
‘Rise,’ ‘Roseanne’ reboot, ‘Handmaids’ return pepper TV season
The cast of the ‘Roseanne’ reboot. (Photo courtesy ABC)
The spring 2018 television season may lack some of the sparkle of last year’s schedule, but there are still some new offerings and returning favorites that LGBT TV fans may want to watch.
On March 27, the outspoken Roseanne Barr returns to network television in a continuation (season 10) of the ground-breaking show that bears her name. Most of the original cast will be back. John Goodman returns as Dan Connor (one of the show’s early promos made fun of his return from the dead). Lecy Goranson, Sara Gilbert and Michael Fishman return as the Conner children. In an interesting twist, Sarah Chalke, who briefly replaced Goranson as Becky, will return to the series as a middle-class woman who hires Becky to be her surrogate.
Many of the guest stars will also return, including Roseanne’s lesbian friend Nancy Bartlett (Sandra Bernhard), Roseanne’s African-American neighbors, Natalie West as Crystal and Johnny Galecki as David Healy. The new cast will also be rounded out by several grandchildren. It is not clear if Martin Mull and Fred Willard, whose characters were married on the show, will return.
Early reports from the set say that the series will address the support of both Roseanne Barr and Roseanne Conner for Donald Trump; the death of Becky’s husband Mark Healy — actor Glenn Quinn died in 2002; and that Roseanne’s youngest son Jerry Garcia Conner will not appear because he is “out on a fishing boat.”
“Rise” on NBC has caused controversy even before its premiere on March 13. The series is loosely based on the nonfiction book “Drama High” by Michael Sokolove which tells the true story of high school drama teacher Lou Volpe, who came as gay later in life. Some media outlets have accused producer Jeff Katims with “straight-washing” Sokolove’s book, but the Writers Guild of America has ruled that Katims should be listed as the creator of the television series, instead of saying he “developed” the show from Sokolove’s book.
The show does focus on the drama teacher, played by Jordan Roth, as a straight family man, but Katims adds several LGBT characters, including Michael (played by trans actor Ellie Desautels), a transgender student at the high school; Simon (Ted Sutherland), who is exploring his own sexuality after being cast as a gay character in the school’s production of “Spring Awakening;” and, Volpe’s married lesbian sister-in-law. The cast also includes Rosie Perez as a fellow teacher Volpe and Auli’I Cravalho (the voice of Moana) as a student.
Meanwhile on Paramount, “Heathers” will premiere on March 7. Based on the iconic 1988 movie starring Wynona Ryder, the “pitch-perfect black comedy anthology series” is set in the present day. The story still focuses on “good girl” Veronica Sawyer, along with her boyfriend JD and “the Heathers,” a vicious clique who ruthlessly control life at Westerburg High. This time, however, one of the Heathers is played by a man. Shannon Doherty, one of the cinematic Heathers, will make a guest appearance.
Veronica Sawyer (Grace Victoria Cox) and Heather Chandler (Melanie Field) in the small-screen version of ‘Heathers.’ (Photo courtesy Paramount)
On April 25, a year after the first episode of season one aired, season two of “The Handmaid’s Tale” will premiere on Hulu. The entire main cast will return, including Elisabeth Moss as June/Offred, Ann Dowd as the terrifying Aunt Lydia, openly lesbian actress Samira Wiley as June’s best friend Moira and Alexis Bledsel as the lesbian Handmaid Ofglen, who was formerly known as Emily. New cast members include Clea DuVall as Emily’s wife, openly lesbian actress Cherry Jones as June’s mother, Bradley Whitford as Commander Joseph Lawrence and Marisa Tomei.
Samira Wiley returns as Moira in season two of ‘The Handmaids Tale.’ (Photo courtesy Hulu)
Working closely with novelist Margaret Atwood, writer Bruce Miller has continued to expand the world of Gilead, a dystopian vision of the United States after a theocratic regime has taken power. Fertile women, known as Handmaidens, are forced to be surrogates for the Commanders and their infertile wives; women who resist are forced to clean up toxic waste dumps known as “the Colonies.” Details about season two are sparse, but it is known that there is a large state funeral and that some scenes are set in the horrific Colonies.
And, on April 13, Netflix will reboot a classic sci-fi series, but without an iconic character generally assumed to be gay. In the original “Lost In Space,” Dr. Zachary Smith was played by Jonathan Harris with a delicious campy flair. In a fascinating gender swap, Parker Posey take over the role of the nefarious stowaway. In another interesting casting move, Ignacio Serricchio will claim the role of Major Don West created by Mark Goddard.
In addition, several returning or continuing shows continue to include LGBT characters, although generally in supporting roles.
Season two of “Jessica Jones” returns to Netflix on March 8 (International Women’s Day). Part of the Marvel Comic Universe, the series is grounded in a feminist sensibility with strong women on both sides of the camera. The series stars Krysten Ritter, who was nominated for a Dorian Award from the LGBT critic’s group GALECA, and Carrie Anne Moss as Jones’ lesbian boss Jeri Hogarth.
‘Jessica Jones’ returns to Netflix. (Photo courtesy Netflix)
“Black Lightning,” which premiered on the CW in January, is based on the DC comic about a family of African-American superheroes. Cress Williams plays the title character and Nafessa Williams plays his daughter Anissa Pierce, a crime-fighter who is developing her superpowers under the name of Thunder.
Fox’s airline comedy “LA to Vegas” debuted in January to weak reviews and strong ratings, but it has made a star of Nathan Lee Graham who plays gay flight attendant Bernard. The openly gay actor played Miss Understanding in the original Broadway cast of “Priscilla, Queen of the Desert” and was recently presented with the Jose Esteban Munoz Award from CLAGS: the Center for LGBTQ Studies at the Graduate Center, CUNY. The award is given to an LGBT activist who promotes queer studies outside of academia.
Some of the other shows that continue to feature members of the LGBT community include “Dynasty” with Nicollette Sheridan joining the cast as Alexis; Tig Nataro on Amazon’s “One Mississippi”; the rebooted “Queer Eye for the Straight Guy”; “The Bold and The Beautiful” where Kayla Mosley heats up the set as transgender woman Maya Avant; “Supergirl”; Lena Waithe’s “Chi”; the popular ABC comedy “Modern Family” which was recently renewed for a 10th and final season (although there are talks of a spinoff); and “Grown-ish,” a spin-off of ABC’s “Black-ish.”
There’s also “Call the Midwife” (PBS), “Valor” (the CW), “Madam Secretary” (CBS), “The Fosters” (Freeform), “Riverdale” (the CW), “Portlandia” (IFC), “Grey’s Anatomy” (ABC), “How To Get Away With Murder” (ABC), “Arrow” (the CW) “One Day At A Time” (Netflix) and “Jane the Virgin” (the CW).
Sports
New IOC policy bans trans women from Olympics
New regulation to be in effect at 2028 summer games in Los Angeles
The International Olympic Committee on Thursday announced it will not allow transgender women from competing in female events at the Olympics.
“For all disciplines on the Sports Program of an IOC event, including individual and team sports, eligibility for any Female Category is limited to biological females,” reads the new policy.
The policy states “eligibility for the Female Category is to be determined in the first instance by SRY Gene screening to detect the absence or presence of the SRY Gene.”
“On the basis of the scientific evidence, the IOC considers that the SRY (sex-determining Region Y) Gene is fixed throughout life and represents highly accurate evidence that an athlete has experienced or will experience male sex development,” it reads. “Furthermore, the IOC considers that SRY Gene screening via saliva, cheek swab or blood sample is unintrusive compared to other possible methods. Athletes who screen negative for the SRY gene permanently satisfy this policy’s eligibility criteria for competition in the Female Category.”
The policy states the test “will be a once-in-a-lifetime test” unless “there is reason to believe a negative reading is in error.”
The new regulation will be in place for the 2028 Summer Olympics in Los Angeles.
“I understand that this a very sensitive topic,” said IOC President Kirsty Coventry on Thursday in a video. “As a former athlete, I passionately believe in the rights of all Olympians to take part in fair competition.”
“The policy that we have announced is based on science and it has been led by medical experts with the best interests of athletes at its heart. The scientific evidence is very clear: male chromosomes give performance advances in sport that rely on strength, power, or endurance,” she added. “At the Olympic Games, even the smallest margins can be the difference between victory and defeat. So, it is absolutely clear that it would not be fair for biological males to compete in the female category. In addition, in some sports it would simply not be safe.”
(Video courtesy of the IOC)
Laurel Hubbard, a weightlifter from New Zealand, in 2021 became the first trans woman to compete at the Olympics.
Imane Khelif, an Algerian boxer, won a gold medal at the 2024 Summer Olympics in Paris. Khelif later sued JK Rowling and Elon Musk for cyberstalking after they questioned her gender identity.
Ellis Lundholm, a mogul skier from Sweden, this year became the first openly trans athlete to compete in any Winter Olympics when he participated in Milan Cortina Winter Olympics in Italy.
President Donald Trump in February 2025 issued an executive order that bans trans women and girls from female sports teams in the U.S.
The U.S. Olympic and Paralympic Committee last July banned trans women from competing in female sporting events. Republican lawmakers have demanded the IOC ban trans athletes from women’s athletic competitions.
“I’m grateful the Olympics finally embraced the common sense policy that women’s sports are for women, not for men,” said U.S. Sen. Tom Cotton (R-Ark.) on X.
An IOC spokesperson on Thursday referred the Washington Blade to the press release that announced the new policy.
a&e features
Introducing the Torchbearers Awards honoring queer, trans women and nonbinary people
Meet the Legends and Illuminators lighting new paths
The Torchbearers Awards are more than recognition—they are a continuation of legacy. They honor the quiet architects of progress in our community: those who organize, advocate, build, and protect, often without fanfare but always with purpose. Rooted in a belief in intentional recognition, this honor names those who carry our movements forward—those who make room for others, who remind us that change is both generational and generative. In a time marked by uncertainty and challenge, these leaders push forward with courage, clarity, and an unwavering commitment to expanding opportunity and equity.
This year’s honorees reflect the full breadth of our community, spanning generations, backgrounds, identities, and industries. From Legends, with decades of leadership and having created pathways for others, to Illuminators, who are lighting new paths with creativity and innovation, each Torchbearer represents the power of intergenerational leadership and the strength found in our diversity. They are organizers, advocates, artists, policy leaders, healers, and changemakers whose lived experiences shape a shared vision for equity and liberation.
This award is our love letter to queer and trans women and nonbinary people who carry the flame when it would be easier to let it dim. To those who consistently show up, who use their voice and visibility and stand firm, often without recognition, so that others may live more freely and fully. The Torchbearers Awards celebrates not just what has been done, but the enduring spirit, responsibility, and collective care that ensure the work continues, and that the flame is always passed forward.
Co-Creators of the Torchbearers Awards: Shannon Alston, June Crenshaw, Heidi Ellis
Torchbearers Awards Advisory Board: Aditi Hardikar, Lesley Bryant, Jasmine Wilson-Bryant, Stephen Rutgers
ILLUMINATOR AWARDEES
- Representative Sharice Davids (she/her), (D, KS-03)
— U.S. House of Representatives - Greisa Martinez Rosas (she/her/ella)
— Executive Director, United We Dream - Paola Ramos (she/her)
— Journalist & Correspondent - Meagan A. Fitzgerald (she/her)
— Journalist & Correspondent - Jessica L. Lewis (she/her)
— Founder / Producer, Play Play DC - Savannah Wade (she/her)
— Founder, OAR Agency - Suhad Babaa (she/her)
— Filmmaker/ Former Executive Director of Just Vision - Ashlee Davis (she/her)
— Global Head of Inclusive Outcomes, Ancestry - Jazmine Hughes (she/her)
— Journalist and Former Editor at New York Times Magazine - Queen Adesuyi (she/they)
— Policy Advisor & Organizer, ReFrame Health & Justice - Michele Rayner, Esq. (she/her)
— Civil Rights Attorney, State Representative (Florida House of Representatives) - Gaby Vincent (she/her)
— Sports/Cultural Commentator and Community Leader - Jenny Nguyen (she/her)
— Founder & Owner, The Sports Bra - Denice Frohman (she/her)
— Independent Artist, Poet / Performer - Vida Rangel (she/her)
— Founder, Our Trans Capital - Roxanne Anderson (they/them)
— Executive Director, Our Space - Ann Marie Gothard (she/her)
— Co-Founder & President, Pride Live (Stonewall National Monument Visitor Center) - Diana Rodriques (she/her)
— Co-Founder & CEO, Pride Live (Stonewall National Monument Visitor Center) - Wendi Cooper (she/her)
— Founder / Executive Director, Transcending Women - Toya Matthews (she/her)
— City of San Antonio, Texas - Mayor Gina Ortiz Jones (she/her)
— Sports/Cultural Commentator and Community Leader - Charity Blackwell (she/her)
— Poet, LGBTQ Advocate & Community Leader - Wilhelmina Indermaur (she/her)
— Director of Communications, Tyler Clementi Foundation - Em Chadwick (she/her)
— CMO, For Them & Autostraddle - Kylo Freeman (they/he)
— CEO, For Them & Autostraddle
LEGEND AWARDEES
- Sheila Alexander-Reid (she/her)
— Executive Director, PHL Diversity, Philadelphia Convention & Visitors Bureau - Cassandra Cantave Burton (she/her)
— Interim Director of Thought Leadership & Senior Research Advisor, AARP - leigh h. mosley (she/her)
— Photographer / Educator, PhotoFlo Photography - Jenn M. Jackson, PhD (they/them)
— Assistant Professor of Political Science; Author & Columnist, Syracuse University - Jordyn White (she/her)
— COO, Washington Prodigy / VP of Leadership Development & Research, HRC Foundation - AJ Hikes (they/them)
— Deputy Executive Director, ACLU - RaeShanda Lias (she/her)
— Digital Creator, RL Lockhart - Donna Payne-Hardy (she/her)
— Educator, EEO Specialist, Former Leader at the Human Rights Campaign - Courtney R. Snowden (she/her)
— Principal, Blueprint Strategy Group - Gaye Adegbalola (she/her)
— Musician & Activist, Musician / Inductee of the Blues Hall of Fame - Cheryl A. Head (she/her)
— Independent Author, Novelist (Crime Fiction) - Letitia Gomez (she/her)
— The American LGBTQ+ Museum, Formerly of Voto Latino - Lynne Brown (she/her)
— Publisher, Washington Blade - Shay Franco-Clausen (She/Her/Ella/Queen)
— Political Strategist and Organizer - Melissa L. Bradley (she/her)
— Founder & Managing Partner, New Majority Ventures - Meghann Burke (she/her)
— Executive Director, NWSL Players Association - Victoria Kirby York, MPA (she/they)
— Director of Public Policy & Programs, National Black Justice Coalition - Joli Angel Robinson (she/her)
— CEO, Center on Halsted - Jeannine Frisby LaRue (she/her)
— CEO, Moxie Strategies - Alice Wu (she/her)
— Film Director (Saving Face, The Half of It) / Screenwriter - Storme Webber (she/her)
— Interdisciplinary Artist / Educator, University of Washington - Kim Stone
— CEO of the Washington Spirit, Washington Spirit - Mickalene Thomas
— American Visual Artist, Mickalene Thomas Studio - Erika Lorshbough (any/they/she)
— Executive Director, interACT - J. Gia Loving (she/ella)
— Co-Executive Director, GSA Network
Celebrity News
D.C. goes gaga for Gaga
Bisexual icon brought ‘The Mayhem Ball’ tour to Washington this week
Lady Gaga this week took D.C. by storm.
The bisexual icon and LGBTQ rights champion brought “The Mayhem Ball” tour to Capital One Arena on Monday and Tuesday.
“Abracadabra,” “Paparazzi,” “Applause,” and “Bad Romance” are among the songs Lady Gaga performed during the 2 1/2-hour long concert. Lady Gaga also celebrated her many queer fans.
“You are precious to us,” she said on Tuesday night before she performed “Born This Way.”
‘No Kings’ protests set for D.C.
Border to border: modern slavery and human trafficking in refugee movements across East Africa
New IOC policy bans trans women from Olympics
Introducing the Torchbearers Awards honoring queer, trans women and nonbinary people
Pa. House passes bill to codify marriage equality in state law
PHOTOS: Capital Stonewall Democrats 50th anniversary
‘Inherit the Wind’ isn’t about science vs. religion, but the right to think
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