by Justina Bonilla
The much-anticipated new Hulu series Love, Victor, premieres on Wednesday, June 17, 2020, starring Michael Cimino as Victor. Love, Victor, is an LGBT+ teen drama premiering in June, recognized as Pride Month. It also comes at a time when LGBT+ (Lesbian, Gay, Bisexual, Transgender, +) representation has dropped on streaming sites.
While following the basic formula of the teen drama programs centering on the challenges of coming of age in the modern era, Love, Victor also highlights the challenges that young LGBT+ POC people face. It integrates the impact that ethnicity, race, cultural practices, and religion can have on a young LGBT+ POC, which can drastically impact their ability to explore, gain support, and come out, compared to their white LGBT+ counterparts.
According to GLADD’s “We are on TV” Report for the 2019-2020 season, there has been an increase of LGBT+ people of color (POC) represented on both broadcast and cable television. Last year, LGBT+ POC outnumbered white LGBT+ characters on broadcast television at 52%. While cable television had 48% percent of LGBT+ characters as POC. This increase also includes LGBT+ Latinx characters, with shows such as Vida and Pose.
Unfortunately, streaming shows have seen a drop in LGBT+ POC representation, at 7%, most notably among LGBT+ Latinx characters. After the departure of One Day at a Time from Netflix to the cable channel Pop TV, there is just a handful of programs with LGBT+ Latinx characters, including Gentefied.
Love, Victor is an original spin-off series, based on the successful book tuned film Love, Simon (2018). Love, Simon broke new ground as the first LGBT+ teen romantic comedy film to be released by a major Hollywood studio, 20th Century Fox. The film follows Simon (Nick Robinson) a closeted white gay high school student, afraid of coming out to his family and friends, begins to communicate with another closeted gay student from his high school via the internet. When faced with the possibility of being outed, Simon goes on a journey of coming to terms with his identity and facing his biggest fear, coming out of the closet.
The writers for Love, Simon Isaac Aptaker and Elizabeth Berger will serve as co-showrunners and executive producers for Love, Victor . They keep many similarities between the movie and show, including it being set in the same time period and at the same high school, Creekwood High. However, with Love, Victor Aptaker and Berger wanted to take a different route exploring the LGBT+ POC experience, specifically the Latinx experience.
In Love, Victor, a nearly 16-year-old Victor Salazar (Cimino) and his family have recently moved from Texas to Atlanta, Gregoria. Though the reason for their movie is initially unclear, we see there is a strain of mysterious origin in his parent’s marriage having an impact on the children. As Victor begins to become situated at Creekwood High he develops a crush on his fellow student Benjie (George Sear), who’s openly gay. He also develops a close bond with his new friend Mia (Rachael Hilson), making him wonder what his true orientation is.
Cimino has been acting since 2015, most notably in Annabelle Comes Home (2019), the third installment of the popular Warner Bros. Pictures Annabelle horror series. This is Cimino’s first major series leading role. Victor’s parents Isabel and Armando are portrayed by seasoned television actors Anna Ortiz (Ugly Betty and Devious Maids) and James Martinez (House of Cards and One Day at a Time). While Victor’s younger siblings Pilar and Adrian will be played by Isabella Ferreira (Orange Is the New Black and Joker) and newcomer Mateo Fernandez. Other notable appearances in Love, Victor include Robinson reprising his role as Simon and popular drag queen Katya Zamolodchikova (RuPaul’s Drag Race).
Originally, Love, Victor was going to be a Disney+ show. However, due to content on the show having adult themes, such as marital issues, underage alcohol use, and sexual exploration, the show was moved Hulu. Hulu has a greater focus on young adult programming, whereas Disney+ focuses more on family content, especially families with smaller children. Disney has 77% controlling interest, with 33% co-owned by Comcast/NBC Universal in Hulu, after acquiring Hulu from 21st Century Fox, in March 2019 (Variety).
Now more than ever, audiences both white and of color, as well as straight and LGBT+ are looking for programs reflective of diverse real-life situations. Among the numerous comments to the Love, Victor youtube trailer by young adults, especially among LGBT+ Latinx reviewers, there is a universally positive and hopeful reaction. At times some reviewers became emotional, because many are experiencing for the first-time seeing is a leading character like them going through similar challenges, like them.
With Hulu’s library including an extensive amount of LGBT+ and Latino programming, Love, Victor, with its optimistic and relatable story will be a wonderful addition to their platform.