The 30th anniversary of Queer as Folk is on the horizon!
Back in 1999, the groundbreaking gay show premiered in the UK on Channel 4 and featured an ensemble cast that trailblazed LGBTQ+ representation on television. Charlie Hunnam played 15-year-old Nathan Maloney who served as a rebellious, confident schoolboy as he navigates the Manchester gay scene.
"What an outpouring of support and celebration that show enjoyed! It was such a beautiful experience and way to start my career. I look back on that with very fond memories and a lot of gratitude. We made an important piece of television! In 1998, there wasn't equality with the gay and heterosexual population. We certainly added a lot of discourse to the conversation that was being had at that time," Hunnam tells Out.
All these years later, Hunnam is continuing his streak of collaborating with iconic queer figures in Hollywood. After starring as the titular character in Monster: The Ed Gein Story, the handsome actor has teamed up with Ryan Murphy once again on Monster: The Lizzie Borden Story.
The shocking true-crime series follows Lizzie Borden as she allegedly murdered her parents with an axe and "gave her mother 40 whacks." Hunnam plays Andrew Borden, Lizzie's father, who's portrayed as a very abusive, manipulative, and sickening parental figure.
In Murphy's telling of Lizzie's story, her queerness is explored more in depth as it was heavily rumored that she was in a relationship with the family's maid, Bridget Sullivan.
"It's a tragic and intriguing story. It does seem like there was an ongoing relationship between Lizzie and Bridget beyond this. They stayed very close. It was highly speculated that Andrew was taking advantage of his role as the boss of the household and having a relationship with Bridget. It seemed like this highly dysfunctional love triangle was established. Maybe that was one of the motivating factors! There was a sense of jealousy and rage and ire at her father for using his authority for sexual favors," Hunnam explains.
Ella Beatty takes on the main role in the jaw-dropping series and hopes audiences can actually find a way to connect with Borden's struggles throughout her very complicated life.
"I was so excited to bring this character and this story to life. I hope audiences will find a lot of current and topical information in our story. Her story is so enduring because it feels very relevant today. It's about how important it is to feel seen and to be loved," Beatty says.
Although Beatty doesn't necessarily defend all of the alleged crimes that define Borden's legacy, she does believe that the very relatable struggles of frustration, abandonment, and abuse can connect with fans of the Monster franchise.
"She's never felt recognized as a human being before. We can all relate to that first experience of feeling loved by someone and how that can reconfigure the chemistry of your brain, body and spirit. That connection and relationship is integral to her arc as a character. Violence and murder are unjustifiable, but the human part of this story is universal," Beatty explains.
It also wouldn't be a true Ryan Murphy production if LGBTQ+ representation wasn't on full display. Rebecca Hall, who portrays Lizzie's mother Abby, was thrilled that the Netflix interpretation highlighted the coming-out experience in the late 1800s.
"There's queer energy everywhere! This whole thing is very queer. That's what I loved about it and what drew me to it. This is the angle Ryan Murphy wanted to take and I think it's a really good one. The story is an exploration of what, like women in different various different cages. Adding another layer of repressed sexuality makes it even richer. Everyone is repressed in some way," Hall says.
Monster: The Lizzie Borden Story is streaming now on Netflix. Watch the trailer below!
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