Exclive: Ted Lasso creators handled their gay footballer storyle a 'rehg' and 'signifint' way, say leadg LGBTQ mentators as h TV show is praised for showg 'humany' | US

Contents:

• ‘TED LASSO’ ACTOR BILLY HARRIS ON WHAT IT TOOK TO UNRSTAND GAY SOCCER PLAYER COL: ‘HE WASN’T LIVG HIS TE SELF’
• “TED LASSO” JT REVEALED THAT THIS CHARACTER IS GAY AND CLOSETED
• HOW THIS BETIFUL TED LASSO SCENE PTURED THE 'ACHE' OF BEG A GAY MAN PROFSNAL SPORTS
• BILLY HARRIS OPENS UP ABOUT PORTRAYG A GAY CHARACTER ‘TED LASSO’
• “SO PROUD OF THIS SHOW”: TED LASSO FANS REACT TO PROGRS OF GAY STORYLE
• EXCLIVE: TED LASSO CREATORS HANDLED THEIR GAY FOOTBALLER STORYLE A 'REHG' AND 'SIGNIFINT' WAY, SAY LEADG LGBTQ MENTATORS AS H TV SHOW IS PRAISED FOR SHOWG 'HUMANY'
• IS JAM LANCE’S TRENT CRIMM GAY TED LASSO?
• ‘TED LASSO’ ACTOR BILLY HARRIS ON WHAT IT TOOK TO UNRSTAND GAY SOCCER PLAYER COL: ‘HE WASN’T LIVG HIS TE SELF’
• 'TED LASSO' PRAISED FOR "REHG" GAY FOOTBALLER STORYLE

‘TED LASSO’ ACTOR BILLY HARRIS ON WHAT IT TOOK TO UNRSTAND GAY SOCCER PLAYER COL: ‘HE WASN’T LIVG HIS TE SELF’

Ted Lasso watchers have speculated that AFC Richmond player Col Hugh (Billy Harris) is gay sce early season two, and those spicns were nfirmed season three’s third episo. Trent then shar wh Col that he’s gay as well, openg the door for Col to — perhaps — tell his teammat and ach.

It seems like sports, particularly men’s sports, is among the fields that has been slowt to adapt and accept gay people. There’s a le episo three where Isaac [Kola Bokni] says “That’s a b gay” a risive way.

It’s kd of a two-way street, bee wh the world of the show, no one knows about Trent beg gay eher.

“TED LASSO” JT REVEALED THAT THIS CHARACTER IS GAY AND CLOSETED

After two and half seasons, 11 Emmy Awards, and a recent vis to the Whe Hoe, Ted Lasso has fally acknowledged s LGBTQ+ characters: Col Hugh (Billy Harris) and Trent Crimm (Jam Lance) are gay, and Keeley Jon (Juno Temple) is officially a bisexual took Ted Lasso a few seasons for s characters to bee explicly gay, was worth the wa. ” In episo six, Col ventur to a gay club Amsterdam by himself and ns to sports journalist Trent Crimm, who adms he recently me out to his wife and dghter. "We've known for a while that Col was gay, " -creator Brendan Hunt said recently.

When nsirg whether or not to st someone new to portray a gay football player, Hunt shared that the wrers thought: “It'll be better if that person's already on the team and we're not acknowledgg and they're hidg so well.

HOW THIS BETIFUL TED LASSO SCENE PTURED THE 'ACHE' OF BEG A GAY MAN PROFSNAL SPORTS

“Ted Lasso” character Col Hugh has had more time the spotlight Season 3 sce he was revealed to be gay — and the velopment ma sense to the actor playg him, Billy Harris.

Early on Season 3, Col is revealed to dienc to be gay, but his teammat don’t yet know. Journalist Trent Crimm (Jam Lance), who himself is gay, tch Col kissg another man outsi of Sam’s (Toheeb Jimoh) rtrant, and he nonts Col about .

He referred to the gay datg app Grdr, parg to Keeley’s app Bantr. “What was so betiful about that scene is you had an olr gay guy jt talkg to a younger gay guy who is nfed and don’t you know. The other shoe seemed about to drop last week's Amsterdam-set episo when Trent followed Col to a gay bar, promptg the athlete to swiftly ex wh the wrer on his heels.

BILLY HARRIS OPENS UP ABOUT PORTRAYG A GAY CHARACTER ‘TED LASSO’

Three episos to s third — and possibly fal — season, the sports edy TV seri Ted Lasso jt revealed that one of s regular characters is gay and closeted. “We’ve known for a while that Col was gay, ” Hunt told the U.

Hunt said that he and the show’s wrers always tend to troduce a gay character on the show’s fictnal team, but opted to have an existg character e out rather than stg someone new. They even toyed wh the ia of revealg that Col was gay and closeted Season 2, but stead merely seed the ia wh a le which the character mentns Grdr.

“SO PROUD OF THIS SHOW”: TED LASSO FANS REACT TO PROGRS OF GAY STORYLE

"Ted Lasso, an Apple TV+ show centerg around the tular character (Jason Suikis), an Amerin llege football ach who is hired to ach an English Premier League soccer team, AFC Richmond, even though he has no experience, has jt troduced s first gay until now, this progrsive seri has yet to feature an out character. Their openns has also been met wh overwhelmg support and celebratn, for the most UK not that there are around 550 active players the Premier League, which mak statistilly likely that at least one player is gay. Although England as a whole has changed support of gay rights, the Ted Lasso storyle uld be settg up an openly gay footballer the fictnal Premier League to hopefully fluence the real episos of Ted Lasso stream on Apple TV+ every Lasso — Season 3 Official Trailer | Apple TV+All roads have led to this.

Col (portrayed by Billy Harris, who ma his TV but wh this show) was also skeptil when he disvered that Trent (played by Jam Lance) was at the gay bar that the Richmond footballer snuck out to attend.

Trent and Col eventually ma their way to the Homomonument, a memorial Amsterdam that memorat all LGBTQ+ dividuals who lost their liv World War II and who have been persecuted due to their sexual orientatn. Trent, who revealed that he is also gay and has the support of his fay, gave Col an opportuny to share his tth. The wrer allowed Col to feel fortable enough to open up and share tails about his experience as a privately gay athlete playg at the hight levels the English Premier League.

EXCLIVE: TED LASSO CREATORS HANDLED THEIR GAY FOOTBALLER STORYLE A 'REHG' AND 'SIGNIFINT' WAY, SAY LEADG LGBTQ MENTATORS AS H TV SHOW IS PRAISED FOR SHOWG 'HUMANY'

There are plenty of gay athlet who are speakg out and leadg the way to advote for social progrs, but as Col explaed, some folks simply don’t want the attentn. This is one of the many reasons there are few openly gay male athlet pro sports. “Some athlet don’t want their beg gay or bi to be part of how they’re most-known.

IS JAM LANCE’S TRENT CRIMM GAY TED LASSO?

We had more openly LGBTQ+ athlet at the 2021 Olympics than ever before, and we’re seeg more and more openly gay men playg at the profsnal level.

But the gay male iendship the world of sports on a show as big as Ted Lasso was even more powerful. In the show’s send season, Col ma a passg ment about the gay datg app Grdr.

In a recent terview wh Variety, the 29-year-old Brish actor opened up about playg a gay role, which has a signifint storyle ‘Ted Lasso’s current season. I’ve had so many people tellg me: “I loved football, but I was also gay school and I knew well the prejudic that go hand--hand wh beg gay and beg a footballer. Instead, he was sentially one of the players to make up the numbers as part of the locker room scenery, wh ocsnal moments of screen time to fill shas of his is, until last week's episo, when the openg scen revealed Col is gay.

‘TED LASSO’ ACTOR BILLY HARRIS ON WHAT IT TOOK TO UNRSTAND GAY SOCCER PLAYER COL: ‘HE WASN’T LIVG HIS TE SELF’

Col's sexualy do not appear to be somethg he has shared wh his Richmond mat, reflectg the bter realy of profsnal football and s arth of openly gay male TV+Yet Col's cisn unr threat the fal scen, when journalist Trent Crimm (Jam Lance), who has been followg the team om pillar to post to wre a book about their journey, spots Col and Michael kissg a shroud alleyway outsi the rtrant. If we were hopg for an answer to that qutn the latt episo, we were spectacularly nied fact, if you had somehow missed the third episo and skipped straight to the fourth, you would be likely unaware that Col is even gay. Once aga, a queer storyle on TV has bee wrapped up the cultural strajacket of queer trma storyl, wh s ugly roots the 'Bury your gays' televisn 's storyle on Ted Lasso weeks after Channel 4's major Gee Michael documentary Outed, which expertly unpacked the powerful force of the tabloid prs a horrifilly homophobic climate.

"While Ted Lasso has been plagued wh LGBTQ+ omissn prev seasons, now fac a reckong over how Col's story arc uld unfold and whether uld only pound the culture of shame facg the gay muny TV+Ted Lasso -creator Brendan Hunt, who plays Coach Beard, said that while beg openly gay the sport is "still taboo", there are creasgly more players g out. This season, queerns was fally troduced to the seri when they nfirmed that Billy Harris’ fan-favoure Richmond FC player is gay and the closet; reflectg the harsh realy of homosexualy profsnal football and s lack of openly out athlet the procs.

'TED LASSO' PRAISED FOR "REHG" GAY FOOTBALLER STORYLE

On this week’s episo, Isaac – who is hurt that Col didn’t nfi him sooner – nonts a vlent ‘fan’ the stands after he hurls homophobic abe at the team. After the rt of the team mistake Isaac for beg gay, as a rult of his unexpected reactn to the ‘f’ word, Col out to overwhelmg support – and another classic bizarre analogy om Jason Suikis’ tle character that exprs their love for him.

The scene was mend by fans, who celebrated the show’s approach to the ongog issue of homosexualy football. “Ted takg the perfect approach by lettg Col know DOES matter that he’s gay, bee ’s a part of who he is, ” said one viewer.