10 of the Most Promising, Unmade LGBTQ+ Scripts In Hollywood

As Hollywood is still trying to figure out what great queer storytelling can look like, GLAAD and The Black List have created a tool to make such a journey a little easier. The world's largest LGBTQ+ media advocacy organization and the group known for its annual survey of Hollywood executives' favorite unproduced screenplays, respectively, announced Sunday at Sundance the first ever GLAAD List -- a curated list of the most promising unmade LGBTQ-inclusive scripts in Hollywood. The inaugural docket of 10 includes scripts about trans youth, HIV and AIDS, and LGBTQ+ icon Bayard Rustin.

"There is no more reputable source for discovering quality scripts in Hollywood than The Black List," said Jeremy Blacklow, GLAAD's Director of Entertainment Media, in a statement. "The Black List's commitment to elevating marginalized voices in the film industry is unparalleled and GLAAD is excited to lock arms with them in helping bring diverse LGBTQ stories to Hollywood's attention."

Since its inception in 2005, The Black List has become a calling card of sorts for screenwriters. More than 400 scripts that have been on the annual list have been made into movies. Black List films have won 53 Academy Awards from 262 nominations, including 4 of the last 10 best picture Oscars and 10 of the last 22 best screenplay Oscars.

"The Black List is thrilled to be working with GLAAD to shine a spotlight on brilliant LGBTQ-inclusive scripts hosted on the Black List and beyond," said Franklin Leonard, the Founder and CEO of The Black List, in a statement. "We are even more excited by the prospect that this spotlight will vault these films toward production and into theaters around the country and the world, bringing with them a more LGBTQ-inclusive culture and society."

The GLAAD List, curated by the organization's staff, is composed of the highest-rated scripts on The Black List platform that feature lesbian, gay, bisexual, transgender, and/or queer characters. They must contain fair, accurate, and inclusive LGBTQ+ representation, be bold and original, and pass the Vito Russo Test among other criteria.

Check out the loglines The GLAAD List below:

The Ecdysiasts by Mary F. Unser

Soon the 13-year periodical cicadas will emerge from underground by the millions, molt and fill the air with their joyous, deafening song. Above ground, 13-year-old Trygg is struggling with his own emergence since the death of his older sister Katie. When lesbian entomologist Allison Armstrong moves in next door, she and Trygg become fast friends and make plans to celebrate the appearance of the cicadas.

The Enclosed by Chris Basler

In 13th century England, Brigid, an anchoress living a hermetic existence in a church cell, stumbles upon a holy relic that may give her life new meaning -- but when a sinister entity after the relic threatens her, she's forced to confide in an impertinent servant girl with plans of her own.

Me & Tammy Faye at the Betty Ford Clinicby Pamela Garcia Rooney

The totally made-up story of the unlikely bond between a Latinx transgender woman and the queen of Christian televangelism, inspired by the very real life of Tammy Faye.

Paragraph 175by Diane Hanks

In the storm of persecution that is Hitler's rise to power, two lovers are torn apart and find themselves on opposite sides of the conflict: one a prisoner in a concentration camp, the other his captor.

Queen by Harry Tarre

Based on the inspiring true story of the world's first openly transgender high school Prom Queen, Corey Rae.

Scott by Anna Rose Moore

After her best friend dies, a success-driven lawyer is left with an unwinnable case - a female inmate's accusations of rape by her prison guards. She soon uncovers a massive systemic scandal of sexual abuse by prison staff and the network used to cover it up.

Three Months by Jared Frieder

After being exposed to HIV the weekend of his high school graduation in 2011, a queer teenager from Miami must survive the three months it takes to get tested in this coming-of-age dark comedy about shame and resilience.

Trouble Man by David Carlson

The incredible true story of unsung hero Bayard Rustin, the gay African American architect of the Civil Rights Movement and right hand man to Martin Luther King, Jr.

What If? by Alvaro Garcia Lecuona

An unassertive 17-year-old turns his high school on its head when he asks out his crush, a transgender girl.

Your Boy by Matt Whitaker

Home for the summer on Long Island, a shy Black college student comes out to his oldest and closest friend. But after an internship in Manhattan leads him to an exhilarating gay social scene, the 21-year-old is caught between his newly confident lifestyle and the unpopular straight friend who once knew him best.

RELATED: The 2019 GLAAD Media Awards Nominations Are Here