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Andrew Rannells: The Gayest Gay Guy on Television?

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The actor says, 'As a gay man, I think there’s a responsibility to show a fully realized person...'

Photo: Andrew Rannells (left) with Justin Bartha in 'The New Normal.'

Andrew Rannells has played gay on Broadway (Book of Mormon) and is currently playing gay on HBO (Girls). And next up he'll be going primetime with his gay when he stars opposite Justin Bartha as half of a gay couple trying to have a baby through a surrogate in The New Normal. So does that mean Rannells will be the most visible gay guy playing gay guys for all of America? We think it just might be so.

When Vulture asked in a recent interview: "Do you ever feel a special investment in the gay characters your play?" Rannells gave quite an eloquent reply:

"Well, there's a part of me that would say I treat every character in the same way -- to be as honest as possible with every role. But then, as a gay man, I think there's a responsibility to show a fully realized person, so even though Elijah [in Girls] might not be the the best person in the world, I want to make him as fully fleshed out and human as possible. Because chances are he's gonna represent somebody who's a real person. With The New Normal, I feel even a larger responsibility because it's sort of a new idea for a lot of viewers and Americans, to see Justin Bartha and I play this very much in-love couple who just wants to have a baby. We're telling that story for the first time, in a way, for a lot of people, so I think there's a lot of responsibility there."

So, now that the networks all want a gay character on every series (and doesn't it seem that way these days?), then isn't it better to have a gay actor who actually thinks about these things? We think so.

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