The GLAAD Wrap: Archie Comics reveals asexual character, 'The Magicians' renewed, and more!
Katie Yu/The CW
Every week, The GLAAD Wrap brings you LGBT-related entertainment news highlights, fresh stuff to watch out for, and fun diversions to help you kick off the weekend.
1) Protagonist Pictures has come on board Finnish director Dome Karukoski’s new biopic Tom of Finland to handle worldwide sales. The film will follow the story of Touko Laaksonen who found refuge in his (now iconic) art after returning home from his successful rise in the Finnish army during World War II to find himself discriminated against for being gay. Production on the film is due to start this spring in Sweden.
2) SyFy has renewed their freshman series, The Magicians for a second season. Based on the best-selling Lev Grossman novels, the series follows a group of magicians at a magical graduate school. This includes the out character of Eliot (Hale Appleman), the charismatic unofficial leader of the student body. The Golden Globe winning Mozart In the Jungle has been renewed for a third season by Amazon. Out actor Andy Mientus will reprise his role as the gay villain Pied Piper on The CW’s The Flash. Mientus will return in the 17th episode entitled “Flash Black,” which is reported to be an alternative timeline exploration. CBS’ highly anticipated Star Trek TV series has found its showrunner in out writer/director Bryan Fuller (Hannibal); the series is set to launch in 2017.
3) YouTube Red, the new paid subscription service from YouTube, has announced a slate of original programming for 2016. One of these includes an as-yet untitled documentary from YouTuber Gigi Gorgeous and Academy Award-winning documentarian Barbara Kopple. The feature will follow Gigi’s story, growing up, and what it means to be trans in the world of new media. The project is slated for release later this year exclusively to YouTube Red subscribers.
4) The nominations for the iHeartRadio Music Awards have been announced. Out singer Sam Smith received four nominations, including Male Artist of the Year and Album of the Year. Additionally, Lady GaGa received a nomination for Best Song from a Movie, with “Til It Happens to You” from The Hunting Ground, Adam Lambert is nominated in Best Fan Army, and Troye Sivan is nominated in Best Cover Song for his mashup of “Hands to Myself/Sorry.” The award show will air April 3rd on TNT, TBS and truTV.
5) Out country singer Brandy Clark has released the first single “Girl Next Door” from her upcoming album Big Day In A Small Town. Her sophomore album is set for release April 1, her track “Hold My Hand” is up for Best Country Song at next week’s 58th Grammy Awards.
6) In the most recent issue, popular Archie Comics character Jughead came out as asexual. In Jughead No. 4, released on Wednesday, the character casually mentions his asexuality to out character Kevin Keller. Archie comics has previously received a GLAAD Media Award in Outstanding Comic Book for their portrayal of Keller. Jughead is one of the few canon portrayals of asexuality in popular culture, No. 4 is now available on shelves and digitally.
7) Filmmakers Craig Campobasso and Ronnie Kerr are looking for funding help for their new comedy feature Please Don’t Eat the Pansies. The two have written the screenplay for a gay romantic comedy centered on four gay couples whose lives intersect at a party. The film will also look specifically at issues faced by men over the age of 40 including balancing love and dating with caring for aging parents. You can check out the Indiegogo campaign here for more information on the film.
www.glaad.org/blog/glaad-wrap-archie-comics-reveals-asexual-character-magicians-renewed-and-more
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