A series about lesbians and straight women will star a cast of beautiful actresses.
Gays are in on TV these days, but Showtime is going where no programmer has gone before with a series – exploring the lesbian lifestyle.
In January, the network will launch “The L-Word,” a stylish drama revolving around a group of lesbians and straight women in Los Angeles. The show looks at their relationships, their workplace settings, and clearly, based on a series of clips shown to the media, their bedrooms.
It’s filled with beautiful women such as Jennifer Beals, Pam Grier, Mia Kirshner and Karina Lombard.
And the combination could make it appealing to straight men drawn to the sexual lives of lesbians – as well as gays, lesbians and heterosexual women.
“Lesbian sex, girl-on-girl, is a whole cottage industry for heterosexual men,” said Gary Levine, Showtime’s executive vice president of original programming, noting the popularity of Howard Stern’s frequent references to lesbians.
The show was in development for two years – long before the current gay-is-cool trend hit. Production began this summer on a two-hour pilot and 12 hour-long episodes.
It starts with a woman (Kirshner) moving to Los Angeles with her boyfriend, where they move next door to a lesbian couple (Beals and Laurel Hollomon). Soon, the woman is questioning her sexuality. The circle of friends includes a closeted tennis player and a bisexual journalist.
“Showtime seems to relish telling these stories as much as I do,” creator Ilene Chaiken said. “All of us have felt like we were doing something quite bold, something unexpected, and, from time to time, something very emotional.”
Comparisons to Showtime’s original series “Queer as Folk,” which is built around a group of gay men in Pittsburgh, are inevitable, but Showtime staffers are hoping “The L-Word” draws a wider audience.
While “Queer as Folk” has been groundbreaking in its own right, research has indicated straight men weren’t tuning in because of graphic, male-on-male sex scenes. As such, audience levels have not hit those of other successful pay-cable series.
The “The L-Word” is not all about sex, but Showtime’s promotions – full episodes have not been released – indicate it’s certainly going to be racy.
Once the viewers are there, programmers believe they’ll be drawn by the strong emotional stories and the ensemble cast.
“If they pull them in and they get hooked on the titillation factor, that straight male is going to learn about the lives of lesbians,” said Scott Seomin, entertainment media director at the Gay and Lesbian Alliance Against Defamation.
“The straight men are going to sexualize beautiful lesbians anyway,” Seomin added. “Let’s educate them along the way.”
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AP-NY-10-29-03 1300EST
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