Arts & Entertainment
New Hulu series ‘The Bisexual’ is smart, sexy and funny
‘Cameron Post’ filmmaker finds inspiration in tale of lesbian ready to explore
Maxine Peake (left) as Sadie and Desiree Akhavan as Leila in ‘The Bisexual.’ (Photo by Tereza Cervenova; courtesy Hulu)
After she’s slept with a man for the first time, Leila ruefully observes, “I thought sex with a man would be different, but it’s not.” Then she adds, “but with guys, there’s clean-up.”
This exchange is just one of the highlights of “The Bisexual,” a great new six-episode series premiering today on Hulu. The series is an insightful comedy of sexual manners that is smart, sexy and quite funny.
Leila is played by gifted filmmaker Desiree Akhavan (“The Miseducation of Cameron Post,” “Appropriate Behavior”) who also co-wrote (with Cecilia Frugiuele) and directed the series. Leila is a native New Yorker who’s living in London with Sadie (Maxine Peake), her long-term business and romantic partner.
As the series opens, it’s clear their relationship is starting to fray. Sadie’s thinking about marriage and children; Leila is not. Leila decides they should take a break in their personal relationship even though they will still work together. As Leila says when she awkwardly tries to reassure their staff that everything will be all right, “Mommy and Daddy still love you.”
With the help of her best friend Daniz (the delightfully deadpan Saskia Chana), Leila moves in with Gabe (Brian Gleeson), a neurotic author and professor with problems of his own. His sort-of girlfriend Francesca (Michélle Guillot) is also one of his students and she’s rather ambivalent about their relationship, noting “you don’t fuck the way you write.”
When Leila tells Gabe that she’s interested in sleeping with men (something she could never admit to her lesbian friends), the two form an awkward partnership. Leila introduces Gabe to London’s queer scene and reluctantly tries to help him decipher his complicated relationship with Francesca. Gabe becomes Leila’s wingman and takes her to straight bars while helping her keep her new sexual adventures a secret from Sadie and their circle of friends.
The scripts by Akhavan and Frugiuele are simply superb. The writing sparkles effortlessly; the dialogue is crisp, lively and witty while always feeling very naturalistic. They create a cast of fascinating well-rounded characters with interesting quirks and flaws. Each character is presented with deep compassion and complex emotional issues are handled with an appealingly light touch.
Akhavan’s work as a director is also assured and nuanced. The pacing is brisk and the sex scenes are well-choreographed. She has a playful touch with the material and a solid collaboration with camera operator Ilana Garrard and music supervisor Amy Ashworth.
That sense of fun also extends Akhavan’s partnership with title designer Charlotte Retief. In each episode, the words “The Bisexual” show up in a different place. Spotting the title becomes a fun game like spotting one of Alfred Hitchcock’s cameos or one of the “Ninas” in an Al Hirschfeld illustration.
Writer/director/actor Akhavan proves she’s a legitimate triple threat with her sensitive portrayal of Leila. Akhavan boldly embaces every aspect of Leila’s changing and often prickly personality. She deftly captures the character’s vulnerability as well as her frequent insensitivity. When she brutally dumps one of the men she’s been seeing, he calls her “an emotional intimacy whore;” his assessment is not entirely off-base, even if it doesn’t describe the entirety of Leila’s big heart.
The rest of the cast is equally strong. Peake brings a steely sense of elegance to Sadie and Gleeson imbues Gabe with a level of dysfunction that is frequntly appealing and occasionally annoying. The supporting cast create vivid characters with quick brushstrokes.
“The Bisexual” does an outstanding job of representing a segment of the LGBT community that is too often ignored. Akhavan and company capture Leila’s second coming-out process with great finesse. They sensitively track her journey from a woman who rejects bisexuality and sexual fluidity to a woman who begins to express her authentic self. Her journey is both moving and amusing.
Sports
Jason Collins dies at 47
First openly gay man to actively play for major sports team battled brain cancer
Jason Collins, the first openly gay man to actively play for a major professional sports team, died on Tuesday after a battle with brain cancer. He was 47.
The California native had briefly played for the Washington Wizards in 2013 before coming out in a Sports Illustrated op-ed.
Collins in 2014 became the first openly gay man to play in a game for a major American professional sports league when he played 11 minutes during a Brooklyn Nets game. He wore jersey number 98 in honor of Matthew Shepard, a gay college student murdered outside of Laramie, Wyo., in 1998.
Collins told the Washington Blade in 2014 that his life was “exponentially better” since he came out. Collins the same year retired from the National Basketball Association after 13 seasons.
Collins married his husband, Brunson Green, in May 2025.
The NBA last September announced Collins had begun treatment for a brain tumor. Collins on Dec. 11, 2025, announced he had Stage 4 glioblastoma.
“We are heartbroken to share that Jason Collins, our beloved husband, son, brother and uncle, has died after a valiant fight with glioblastoma,” said Collins’s family in a statement the NBA released. “Jason changed lives in unexpected ways and was an inspiration to all who knew him and to those who admired him from afar. We are grateful for the outpouring of love and prayers over the past eight months and for the exceptional medical care Jason received from his doctors and nurses. Our family will miss him dearly.”
NBA Commissioner Adam Silver said Collins’s “impact and influence extended far beyond basketball as he helped make the NBA, WNBA, and larger sports community more inclusive and welcoming for future generations.”
“He exemplified outstanding leadership and professionalism throughout his 13-year NBA career and in his dedicated work as an NBA Cares Ambassador,” said Silver. “Jason will be remembered not only for breaking barriers, but also for the kindness and humanity that defined his life and touched so many others.”
“To call Jason Collins a groundbreaking figure for our community is simply inadequate. We truly lost a giant today,” added Human Rights Campaign President Kelley Robinson in a statement. “He came out as gay — while still playing — at a time when men’s athletes simply did not do that. But as he powerfully demonstrated in his final years in the league and his post-NBA career, stepping forward as he did boldly changed the conversation.”
“He was and will always be a legend for the LGBTQ+ community, and we are heartbroken to hear of his passing at the young age of 47,” she said. “Our hearts go out to his family and loved ones. We will keep fighting on in his honor until the day everyone can be who they are on their terms.”
The Washington Blade will update this article with additional reaction when it becomes available.
Glitterati Productions held the “Studio 69” party at Bunker on Friday, May 8.
(Washington Blade photos by Michael Key)
Arts & Entertainment
Washington Blade’s Pride on the Pier returns June 13 to kick off D.C. Pride week
Pride on the Pier officially launches Pride Week in D.C.
The Washington Blade’s annual Pride on the Pier celebration returns to The Wharf on Saturday, June 13, 2026 from 4-9 p.m., bringing thousands of LGBTQ community members and allies together for an unforgettable waterfront celebration to kick off Pride week in Washington, D.C.
Now in its eighth year, Washington Blade Pride on the Pier extends the city’s annual celebration of LGBTQ visibility to the bustling Wharf waterfront with an exciting array of activities and entertainment for all ages. The District Pier will offer DJs, dancing, drag, and other entertainment. Alcoholic beverages will be available for purchase for those 21 and older.
“Pride on the Pier has become one of the signature moments of Pride in D.C.,” said Lynne Brown, publisher of the Washington Blade. “There’s nothing like watching our community come together on the waterfront with live music and incredible energy as we kick off Pride week.”
Pride on the Pier is free and open to the public, with VIP tickets available for exclusive pier access to the Dockmaster Building. To purchase VIP tickets visit www.prideonthepierdc.com/vip.
Additional entertainment announcements, sponsor activations, and event details will be released in the coming weeks.
Event Details:
📍 Location: District Pier at The Wharf (101 District Sq SW, Washington, DC)
📅 Dates: Friday, 13, 2026
⏱️ 4-9PM
🎟️ VIP Tickets: www.PrideOnThePierDC.com/VIP
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