Zach: A Gay No More! [POSSIBLE SPOILER, if you're not up to date]

monkeyfudge

I came across this article.

http://www.afterelton.com/TV/2006/12/heroes.html

Heroes lovers, here is a mid-season surprise for you: Zach is not gay.

An NBC publicist told AfterElton in a phone conversation that Zach "is not gay", that it was something that was "for sure" and "in all certainty." AfterElton contacted NBC for confirmation after being told by Thomas Dekker's management (Dekker plays Zach), the character of Zach is absolutely straight.

For those that have followed the show closely and taken even a cursory look at NBC's marketing efforts around the show (which have repeatedly insinuated, implied and led most viewers to believe that the character is gay), this is interesting—and troubling—news.

What does it mean when a network's website portrays a character as gay, and yet the publicity department suddenly claims that he isn't? Or when the series creator and writer are quoted in an interview conducted before the show premieres that the character is, indeed, supposed to be gay? [Ed. Note: See creator Tim Kring's response to the controversy on the AfterElton.com blog.] That's not even factoring in all the loaded dialogue and the character's gay-friendly Myspace page (how many straight teens love Priscilla: Queen of the Desert, Velvet Goldmine, and Hedwig and the Angry Inch?). Is it possible for a character's very sexuality to be mis-marketed? Or is there a different, more disturbing situation occurring?

While hats are off to Dekker for landing the plum lead role in the upcoming Terminator spin-off series, The Sarah Connor Chronicles (as announced on Thursday), it does make one wonder exactly where the pressure to bury the character's gayness might have come from.

I think this is a real shame. I thought it was really good how they were developing a homosexual character who wasn't a total stereotype. And it's awful that it seems to have been studio pressure that have forced the change.

Of course

maybe after he got his memory wiped by the Haitian he forgot he was gay.

radiospan

Yeah, the possibility that he just "wasn't gay anymore" crossed my mind during the latest episode.

I liked how they made it kinda vague in the earlier episodes, and it was just kinda hinted at it passing, without making a big deal of it.

Definitely a shame alright...

Goodshape

Damn, that's a pity. Bordering on a disgrace, to be honest.

Will be interested to see how they try to explain that one. I appreciated the ambiguity about his sexuality in the early episodes - but come on, it wasn't that ambiguous.

Paligulus

I know its wrong that in this day and age NBC have to publicly deny that one of the fictional characters in the its show are gay, but to be honest, I never really thought that he was gay myself.

When I saw the character I just automatically presummed he was the same kind of character as the guy in American Beauty (the one who films the plastic bag!!!) right down to the broody looks and video camera. I kind of missed any gay undertones to be quite honest.

For me the character was too 1 dimensional too go any deeper and I thought his main purpose was for a "Will they-wont they" style story line between himself and Clare. I'm presuming the reason NBC came out and denied this is so we can all cheer when himself and clare get together in classic "loser gets popular girl" stylee!!!!!!!!

ixoy

I was quite PO'ed when this story broke last year, as were others. I thought it reasonably clear that the character was meant to be gay - something which was pretty much confirmed by the show's creator Tom Kring. Look at the character's home page - his orientation is "Not sure".

I think it's a pretty disgusting trend, and I'm hazarding a guess that it was at Dekker's management trying to preserve their client's image rather than anything else.

If they don't expand on the sexuality either way now, as a substitute, I'll be somewhat mollified but if the two hooked up I'll be once more disappointed with the cultural state of TV.

WadeTalon

i never really thought he was gay. He just said he knew who is was and was happy with who he was doesnt mean he is gay. And big whoop if he is

Sir Digby Chicken Caesar

we're here, we're not queer
but we're close
get used to it

Jack B. Badd

Personally I didn't get the impression that Zach was gay. And if he is (or isn't), so what? It doesn't have any real relevance to a story about super-humans or specials or whatever.

Sleepy

Never picked up on him being gay at all. "Alternative" sure, the kid was clearly intelligent and into some cultural things that most straight blokes wouldn't be into at that age but being gay isn't anything to do with being alternative, it's about fancying other guys. The character would clearly (to me at least) seem to have been mooning about after Clare since episode one, setting the scene for the type of thing comic-book fans love: the geek getting the girl.

The myspace thing could mean anything: that the person who created it is bi/unsure themselves and wasn't really paying attention when they set up the page, that they were trying to add some suspense to the 'Will they / Won't they' story arc, that the person who put the profile together doesn't believe in reducing the spectrum of human sexual attraction into a binary state or it could have been that they were originally intending for the character to be gay and have since decided they'd rather do the geek gets the girl storyline.

Whatever the case, who gives a monkeys? The characters sexuality has nothing to do with the plot as far as I can tell and why do we always have to show gay characters on television as having distinctly different cultures to straight characters etc? Someone liking Velvet Goldmine, Hedwig and the Angry Inch and Priscilla: Queen of the Desert doesn't automatically make them gay. If anything it's conforming more to stereotypes to insinuate that peoples cultural tastes are determined by their sexualities imho.

monkeyfudge

There are a lot of lines of dialogue that indicate that he wasn't all that into girls.

When Claire is telling him not to mind what the other cheerleaders said about him being gay he says something along the lines of 'It's okay, I'm happy with who I am"

It's really not all that important.

I just liked the fact that it was put in subtly, where as in most TV the gay characters are clearly labeled for the viewers. The fact that a good few on this thread didn't pick up on the hints at all, shows how well it was done.

Jack B. Badd

monkeyfudge wrote:

When Claire is telling him not to mind what the other cheerleaders said about him being gay he says something along the lines of 'It's okay, I'm happy with who I am"

I got the impression that comment was more about him not caring what other people thought or said about him as opposed to validating Jackie's comment about him being gay. In any case, I still like the way the character is portrayed regardless of his sexuality. It's nice to see a teenage character who's willing to be different without there being major angst attached to it and one that's strong enough to not give a damn about what the popular kids are saying about him

ixoy

The character was meant to be gay though, from what we can glean from interviews from Kring before the matter came to a head.

What I hope is that the recent publicity in the States over this announcement doesn't affect how they write the character. The problems were caused by the announcement that he never was gay, never meant to be, etc by certain powers rather than just leaving the matter as is. They could easily have left the ambiguity and never said a word. It was the manner in which they basically seemed to almost reassuring people that they'd never have Dekker be a gay that pissed off so much, as if it would be a bad thing if he was.

As to romance I never once got a whiff of romance off of him regarding Claire and that in itself was refreshing - that the geek didn't want the cheerleader. Having them as close friends, and nothing more wanted by either, would itself defy convention almost. If there's one thing I dislike, it's forced romances between characters in a show that doesn't really need them (*waves angry fist at the love square in BSG*).

Jack B. Badd

ixoy wrote:

If there's one thing I dislike, it's forced romances between characters in a show that doesn't really need them (*waves angry fist at the love square in BSG*).

Amen, brother or sister! Stupid Lee. :mad:

tba

http://profile.myspace.com/index.cfm?fuseaction=user.viewprofile&friendid=93369615

notice the Orientation part

Sarn

The impression I got was that Clare was unsure of his sexuality from some of the comments that she made. The fact they had recently become friends again would mean that she didn't know a lot about him and would explain her assumptions, especially when she was hanging around with people who wanted to label him as being homosexual.

I thought the vibe from his character suggested he was straight and in to Clare. The sterotypical misunderstood best friend who actually fancies the girl.

passive

ooh... He's a wiccan too. He must be alternative :rolleyes:

Overheal

Side note before my post: Im pretty sure its 'Claire', ya west-freak

I totally missed the gay thing to be honest. The gay comment at the high school could have been anything. Honestly, how many times have I been called a fatgaymiserablebastard....when Im working?? it means naught. Someone says **** they know nothing about and thats why you ignore them.

Though it is possible Claire is unsure about it I don't notice any real chemistry between the two: so? It seems more asexual than homosexual.

So what if the character is gay? So what if the Actor is gay? Not too long ago it was which one is gayer: Gandalf or Samwise?

How many of you actual know gay people as a matter of interest? In my experience I've never only seen the odd stereotype: most of them you'd almost never be able to tell; and then that one guy who swore by the drink in him that you were a fine bitch and...*shudders* that was a bad, bad night.

BopNiblets

Bart: He thinks I'm gay?
Dun.. dun-dundun-dun EVERY BODY DANCE NOW!!

I didn't think he was gay, maybe a little nerdy, but even I'm a little nerdy...
HOLY CRAP AM I GAY?!?!

No.

tba

I understand how he feels about Claire, it will all end in tears.

Stark

ixoy wrote:

Look at the character's home page - his orientation is "Not sure".

I'm surprised he didn't put down "Controversial" à la "Bring it on".

I like the byline on his myspace profile: "Coin operated boy" I'm assuming it's a Dresden Dolls reference as opposed to advertising his wares as a really cheap prostitute.

I got the gay vibe off him from the start. I couldn't picture him getting together with Claire even though Claire fancied him. He did flat out reject her advances with a big speech about knowing who he was after all.

unreggd

Thats his Heroic power

He seems gay
Acts gay
He IS gay

but hes NOT

tba

I have that power too!

daiixi

I haven't looked at the myspace and I haven't seen any articles re. Heroes or Zach or any advertising but from watching the show I never thought that Zach might be gay. He certainly doesn't play the character as gay and as for the line "It's okay, I'm happy with who I am" I also thought that he was just above childish namecalling.

Okay, off to myspace now

ixoy

daiixi wrote:

He certainly doesn't play the character as gay and as for the line "It's okay, I'm happy with who I am" I also thought that he was just above childish namecalling.

See that's why it would've been refreshing - people are too used to seeing characters on TV "played as gay" in that they're instantly recognisable from going on about particular music artists, fashion, or making lots of air shapes with their pin-wheeling arms. There's a lot more variety among gay people than that, as most posters here know but as most American TV execs don't seem to know.

The ambiguity over Zach, and the fact that here they could be playing a gay character in a manner that's unusual for TV, was what I liked about it and why I resented them making a pointed remark against it rather than just leaving in the unknown factor and allowing us to interpret ourselves.

daiixi

What was the pointed remark again?

unreggd

there were SO many signs!

*stating he DEFINATELY DOESNT fancy Claire [claire!!!]
*Preaching being who you are
*Saying he'd anally probe Lyle
*wearing coloured suspenders

[after having his mind wiped]

K, time to watch Company Man...........

AdMMM

I didn't think he was gay either. I did pick up on all the mentioned remarks but always put it down to him simply being above petty name calling/being embarrassed to admit he likes Claire/trying to scare the crap out of Lyle.