So showtime just dropped the new L Word trailer and we can’t cope.
Showtime just dropped the first teaser for “The L Word: Generation Q”, featuring original stars Jennifer Beals, Leisha Hailey, and Katherine Moennig, and introducing a few new members (Arienne Mandi, Micah Lee, Jacqueline Toboni, Rosanny Zayas and Sepideh Moafi) to the party for the eagerly anticipated sequel.
According to the pay TV channel’s official description, “The L Word: Generation Q” continues to follow the intermingled lives of Bette Porter (Jennifer Beals), Alice Pieszecki (Leisha Hailey) and Shane McCutcheon (Katherine Moennig), along with new characters Dani Nùñez (Arienne Mandi), Micah Lee (Leo Sheng), Finley (Jacqueline Toboni), Sophie Suarez (Rosanny Zayas) and Gigi (Sepideh Moafi) as they experience love, heartbreak, sex, setbacks and success in L.A.
Guest stars include Brian Michael, Stephanie Allyne, Olivia Thirlby, Fortune Feimster and Latarsha Rose.
“The L Word: Generation Q” is executive produced by showrunner Marja-Lewis Ryan (“The Four-Faced Liar,” “6 Balloons)”, along with with series creator Ilene Chaiken, Kristen Campo, Steph Green (pilot), and original series stars Beals, Moennig and Hailey.
The new series THE L WORD: GENERATION Q premiering on Sunday, December 8 at 10 p.m. ET/PT.
Sarah Shahi is set to return for Showtime’s upcoming The L Word sequel series!
Carmen de la Pica Morales for two seasons and was a fan favourite on the series.
“It was discussed [that] my involvement [would be] very heavily [that] I would be in it. I intend to keep it that way, and so does Showtime,”
Shahi played fan-favorite Carmen — a DJ and love interest for Moennig’s Shane — for two seasons.
“[The L Word] was my first big gig. And to be a part of that, I don’t think I ever really knew what I was stepping into until after and I started speaking with women and getting letters. Just the amount of information that was sent my way about how impactful it was, it put me on this thing where it’s like, everything I want to do from now on, I want it to have meaning and I want it to touch people. That was something I tried to do in Reverie and in Person of Interest and it’s something I’m going to do in City on a Hill. To be a part of that sisterhood was so momentous for me. I’m more than honored that I can go back and re-create it.”
Shahi also opened up about what she thinks Carmen is up to now.
“Whatever she’s doing, I feel like she’s definitely still pining away for Shane. For Shane, Carmen would be the one that got away. But I think that was a big game-changer for her. I’m not sure if she’s still DJing or not but definitely something in the music-art world.”
One thing that’s still to be determined is just how big of a role Shahi will have in the eight-episode revival. Showtime declined comment on Shahi’s involvement.
Playwright and screenwriter Marja-Lewis Ryan will serve as showrunner and executive produce alongside original series creator Ilene Chaiken.
Stars Jennifer Beals (Bette), Katherine Moennig (Shane) and Leisha Hailey (Alice) are also on board to exec produce and will reprise their roles from the original series while also introducing a new ensemble of self-possessed LGBTQIA characters experiencing love, heartbreak, sex, setbacks and success on the east side of Los Angeles.
The reboot, first announced in July 2017, arrives nearly 10 years after the original wrapped its six-season run. It is considered a sequel to the original. Lewis-Ryan was selected following an extensive search for a writer with ties to the LGBTQIA community to document how relationships, lives and experiences have evolved — as well as what has and hasn’t changed since the show launched in 2004. Other characters from the original series — which included fan-favorite Erin Daniels (Dana), Laurel Holloman (Tina), Mia Kirshner (Jenny), and Pam Grier (Kit) — may also appear in a potential new version.
The L Word’s co-creator, Ilene Chaiken will be an executive producer of the series with a new writer/EP with ties to the lesbian community brought in to run the production and once again chronicle the friendships and love lives of modern gay women.
L Word
Jennifer Beals, Katherine Moenig, and Leisha Hailey are set to executive-produce as well as appear on the series. Other characters from the original series may also pop up and will be paired with a whole new cast of women.
Talking to EW, Beals explained why the moment is right for The L Word to return to television.
She also explained
Years ago, Kate and Leisha and I approached Ilene because we were shocked that nothing had taken its place. There was this renaissance, in a way, going on with marriage equality coming to the forefront. It was a different terrain and we thought you can start telling stories in a different way and there’s a whole new generation coming up that views sexuality in a different way. Ilene was in the middle of doing Empire and she was very excited about the idea but there are only so many hours in the day.
Then, the election happened. I remember I was in South Dakota watching the returns come in and I texted Ilene and I said, “We need to do something.” She said, “Let’s get together and talk about it.” So we were spitballing about what to do and I said our skillset is storytelling and I think we need to tell stories and certainly in an atmosphere of increasing hatred towards the LGBT community and frankly anyone who’s categorized as “other,” stories exploring the complexities of friendship and love are all that more crucial. Representation of everything. You can’t go backward. I would love to see the show continue to mine its original themes of friendship and love and community and additionally I’d like it to go a little further and challenge heteronormalcy.
At the reunion, Kate Moenig was adamant that season 6 be forgotten — which means Jenny Schecter lives – but Beals is not to sure.
You really got to hear the pitches of what they want to do. That person is taking on a huge load. They have the history of the show, the legacy of the show, and yet they have to make it better and they have to make it theirs. So to dictate too much at this point in time I think would be problematic. I want to hear what’s coming from them and what excites them and what stories they want to tell because that’s when it’s going to be good when you let somebody fully have their voice.
And on Bette and Tina’s future, well Beals was a little cagey
I don’t want to even say what I would like to see at this point because I think it’s more important for me to be open and listen to people’s ideas and not get stuck in my own desires. If somebody says I think she should be a cheerleader for the Dallas Cowboys. I’m gonna say, “Well I don’t think that’s such a great idea.” Can you imagine? That would be funny [Laughs].
Early this year, Showtime surprised us with news that The L Word was back for a new season.
Now, the shows creator Ilene Chaiken says the sequel to Showtime’s lesbian drama will be more inclusive than the original.
Speaking to TV Guide, Chaiken discussed what fans can expect in the new show.
It’s 10 years hence since we stopped doing The L Word, so the world will be different in all the ways that the world is different now. We’ve made progress, we’ve backslid in some ways, we’ve gotten older, some of us, and there are new young women whose stories we’re going to tell. But I will say that The L Word in 2018 will be more reflective, more inclusive than the original show we did.”
While Jennifer Beals, Kate Moenning and Leisha Hailey are expected to reprise their characters in the new show, Erin Daniels, who played Dana Fairbanks, has yet to announce whether she’ll appear in the reboot.
Chaiken said that she’s hoping Daniels will join the cast.
I hope we’ll be seeing Erin Daniels on the show. I love Erin Daniels, and maybe there’s some way – who knows. I’ve never let go of Dana and neither has the audience – maybe we will [see her].”
According to recent reports, The L Word creator Ilene Chaiken is looking to reshape the show with a next generation crew.
However, this may also mean re-writing the shows history and ignoring the final season.
When speaking with The Hollywood Reporter, Chaiken revealed that she would serve as executive producer for the sequel series along with original series stars Jennifer Beals, Katherine Moennig and Leisha Hailey.
The three actresses would appear as their characters in the revival, and would help connect the dots – or The Chart – to a new group of women that the new series would focus on.
Showtime programming president Gary Levine told THR.
The new L Word will definitely deal with the new fluidity of sexuality; the gender differences in question. That’s not coming from me but everyone who comes in has a complete new canvas that absolutely speaks to the state of the world today and the younger generation. I have no doubt it will be incredibly relevant.”
Other actors from the original series like Erin Daniels (Dana), Laurel Holloman (Tina), Mia Kirshner (Jenny), Sarah Shahi (Carmen) and Pam Grier (Kit) may also appear in the new series.
We’re going to redefine The L Word with a new cast of characters but several of the originals will definitely be integral parts of it. It’s a generational thing and we’ll have both generations represented.”
As for the creative, Chaiken hinted that the revival may, like ABC’s upcoming Roseanne and NBC’s Will and Grace, ignore the final season that centred around a search for who killed Jenny.
“We might forget that last year ever happened.”
She also says she would also ignore the death of fan favorite Dana if she could, though she insists, “I don’t think we can.”
We’ve all learned a lot since then. We’ve been enlightened and the new version of the show will reflect how much more enlightened we are.”
Even though there’s been chatter about Showtime’s other series focused on the lives of LGBT characters, Queer As Folk, getting a revival, Levine says that there are currently no plans to bring back the show.
I feel like it really has been a giant gap in terms of lesbian series since The L Word went off the air. I don’t think there’s been quite as big a gap in terms of gay male characters and series in television. The L Word was a seminal series and there’s been nothing like it so maybe it’s time to try it anew. That’s why we’re pursuing it.”
Entertainment Weeklyreports that Showtime is developing a sequel to its hit queer drama, The L Word.
Series creator Ilene Chaiken says she’s excited about the possibilities ahead, because there has, disappointingly, been no real follow-up in terms of television’s portrayal of gay women:
Chaiken told EW about the series returning.
We talk about it all the time. When we went off the air in 2009, I think a lot of people thought, Okay, the baton is passed now, and there will be lots of shows that portray lesbian life. There’s really nothing. It feels like maybe it should come back.”
According to EW Jennifer Beals, Leisha Hailey, and Kate Moennig have also signed on as executive producers and will also appear in the series.
Beals, Moennig and Hailey will act as bridge characters into the upcoming series, which will follow the lives of a new ensemble of women, chronicling the trials and tribulations of their lives. Other original characters, including Erin Daniels (Dana), Laurel Holloman (Tina), Mia Kirshner (Jenny), Sarah Shahi (Carmen) and Pam Grier (Kit), may also make appearances in the new series.
The original series was praised as the first drama series to focus on lesbian characters in a three-dimensional, realistic way when it first debuted in 2004, and won numerous awards over the years for its portrayal of a group of friends and lovers residing in West Hollywood, California.
The success of The L Word – which ended in 2009 – helped open the door for more varied and sophisticated LGBT-driven series to flourish: Looking, The Fosters, Transparent, Sense8 and Orange Is the New Black, among others. Additionally, the drama featured storylines about equality, legal marriage and benefits and HIV/AIDS at a time when they were frequently overlooked by more mainstream shows.
Showtime previously developed a spin-off for The L Word in 2008, called The Farm, which would have starred Hailey and was set in a prison, not unlike Netflix’s Orange. The idea did not ultimately go to series.
Mia Kirshner: I had no idea until the table read. I had such complicated feelings about Jenny. I was really surprised, I just started to cry. I was really, deeply upset, because she had become a part of me, even though she drove me crazy, that character, and she was so wrong most of the time and so rude.
Jennifer Beals: So entertaining, though! I loooove Jenny.
Kirshner: But I was very, very upset because I had seven years of that character with these people who had become like my family.
Moennig: I just want to pretend that [season] 6 didn’t happen, and just cap it at five. The show wasn’t about that, so let’s cap that and end it at five, because the show wasn’t about a death. That wasn’t what this whole show was about.
Ilene Chaiken: I’m not sure that it was the best choice. I loved the stories we told, but to do a murder mystery maybe was off-topic for us. But it was a metaphor. Jenny brought us into this world. Jenny is going to take us out of this world. It never so much mattered to me, and I realized it matters to the fans. When you tell a story, you owe it to the fans, but to me, it was just a way to talk about this journey that we’ve all been on together and where we are now.
Ten years after The L Word hit the small screen, Entertainment Weekly has rounded up the cast for an all-star reunion.
Watch the video below to see Sarah Shahi, Mia Kirshner, Leisha Hailey, Erin Daniels, Daniela Sea, Kate Moennig and Jennifer Beals discuss love, friendship and laughter.
I would love to revisit The L Word. We talk about it from time to time. I talk about it with some of my colleagues who were in the cast who would love to reboot it.”
Jennifer Beals has even had a few ideas about how the series might be different now.
The L Word is one of those shows that most of my generation ended up finding late at night, in their room, by surprise. After all, when the show came out, Netflix wasn’t right on your computer or tablet yet – we had to make do with what we had.
For so many of us, this was the first image of lesbians we really saw before we came out (Buffy and Xena excluded, of course). Now that we’ve had some time to grow up, we have questions. So… Many…. Questions.
[interaction id=”5665ec7d76e6a1db7f776201″]
1. What is with Shane’s style in Seasons 1-2?
I get the whole rockstar vibe, but did she have to pick rockstars from the ‘70s? We had so many bigger fashion icons that she could have emulated from the music industry. Hell, even Elton John could have been a good look for her – so why did she look like Mick Jagger and Keith Richards?
2. And then, the rest of the seasons, too?
Okay, I’ll admit that I was sucked into the “Sexy Shane” idea for a few years… But I think it’s because she was shown as this Sex Goddess who dressed a bit like me. Albeit, the stuff never looked like that on me because I am substantially bigger than super-skinny Shane. But she basically looks unkempt throughout the whole series, and magically women fall for her like crazy. What’s up with that?
3. But really, what’s up with everyone’s style in the early seasons?
Considering how fashion-forward most of them ended up being in later seasons, it’s a little weird that everyone was so unfashionable in the first couple seasons. I mean, back then I wasn’t too terribly fashionable either, but I didn’t live in a posh neighborhood in LA – I lived in a little country town about forty minutes away from anything worth mentioning. Surely, these women had to have access to high-fashion outlets in Los Angeles.
4. Why are Bette and Tina friends with Shane?
They have literally nothing in common, and they wouldn’t even hang out if they weren’t neighbors, right? Even then, I’ve never been that cozy with random stranger neighbors… Especially those who were from obviously different socioeconomic statuses. Which brings us to…
5. How did Shane, Jenny, and that whole crew afford to live next door to Bette and Tina anyway?
I can tell you from personal experience, being a writer doesn’t pay too much – especially if you’re just kinda going your own way with it, like Jenny did. Shane is a hairdresser to the stars, but she barely ever goes to work and she keeps pissing off clients or getting in trouble with their significant others – how does she even still have a job? Right next door are rich-and-successful Bette and Tina, who have so much money saved up that Bette literally pays for an apartment for Tina as well as keeping up the bills at her own place… What?! How are these two houses even on the same street?!
6. What’s up with The Chart?
I get that this is a major plot point in the show, but how did this actually come about – and how did it grow so friggin’ big? Wouldn’t people want to maintain a little privacy in this part of their lives, especially those who were definitely in the closet about the whole thing? And the Papi hub suggested that people were literally updating their Chart status immediately after getting it on. This is rude, and no one would really keep up with something like this – especially someone as… Ahem… “Busy” as Papi.
7. Does anyone ever really go to work?
Not all of the characters even have jobs, and they’re rarely seen going to work – except Tina and Max, and of course anyone who works at The Planet, at least while they’re working there. Seriously – these people pay for their fancy houses and better fashion choices by barely ever going to work. I don’t buy it. I work 6-7 days a week and can barely afford my coffee addiction.
8. Why is Shane so irresistible?
I already touched on this one before, but really, what is it about Shane that has women entranced? I think maybe it’s a representation of what we all wish we could be… But that’s not realistic, of course. Shane would not have really been pulling in the babes, between her cursed reputation and completely disheveled appearance throughout the majority of the series.
9. Why did Bette and Tina end up together?
They were so wrong for each other, and not because Bette couldn’t keep her eyes on only Tina. Tina was a bit manipulative and controlling, and she was always in some type of pissy mood. Plus, what was with that whole cybersex thing – did we ever really believe it was just curiosity? Maybe this is my inner insecurities taking precedence – I had an ex who went looking for a piece of side action with a straight guy while we were together – but that would have been just as bad as cheating in my book. And those nicknames… Ugh. Gag.
10. Why do we feel so compelled to sing the stupid theme song?
Even if you’ve never actually sung along, you know every word – admit it. And you hate that song, but still, when you hear that intro, you start revving up and picturing the opening credits from your favorite season, no matter which season is actually on at the time.
11. How are there so many single women in LA?
Lesbians aren’t known for staying single, and any time a new lesbian enters their circle, she’s miraculously single. Most lesbians I know wouldn’t make a big move like that without their girlfriends… Anyway, I find it pretty hard to believe that many lesbians enter their world without a girlfriend. Look it over again – how many women come into the plot specifically to destroy a relationship? How is everyone just so OK with hooking up with someone else’s girlfriend?
12. Why did Ivan get mad at Kit?
Or, worded differently, why did he give her a key to his place if she wasn’t allowed to use it? Like, hello, she knows you’re transgender, and she adores you anyway – obviously it’s not her who’s making a big deal out of things and being awkward.
13. Why didn’t Jenny kick out Mr. Creepy like, yesterday?
As soon as I find out I’m being recorded without my knowledge, you’re going to be out of the picture – even if I willingly have sex with you on a regular basis. There is no way I would let someone who has shown a complete breach of personal space to continue living in my spare room. Not a chance. There’s no making up for that.
14. Why didn’t we see more Joyce and Phyllis?
They were probably the cutest couple on the show, and they were barely even on the show. I would have watched the hell out of a spin-off show. It’s not too late, ladies – please team up again and be awesome older crime fighting vigilante lesbian goddesses. Is that too much to ask for?
15. Why didn’t we get to see more of Helena in prison?
It might be one of the most overdone lesbian storylines ever, but we would all watch another lesbian women’s prison TV show – admit it. (I’d settle for a cameo on Orange is the New Black – oh please, can we have a crossover?!)
16. Who actually killed Jenny?
Rumors have been started a million times about this subject. Everyone has heard someone’s theories before, and made their own. Who do you think did it? Tell us in the comments!
(p.s. – I heard a rumor that Alice whispers she did it at the end of the final episode – but I haven’t verified this yet… Planning to dig up a recap for proof!)
Ilene Chaiken, who created the ground breaking lesbian drama The L Word recently talked with Entertainment Weekly and had this to say:
I would love to revisit The L Word. We talk about it from time to time. I talk about it with some of my colleagues who were in the cast who would love to reboot it. I don’t know when.
I’m busy and most of them are too, but I do still think that it’s a viable world in which to tell stories, and those characters are still beloved as far as I can tell.”
While this is hardly a confirmation, it is exciting that Chaiken would be willing to revisit the show, and with such large fan base, a reboot would presumably be rather successful – right?!
The L Word first premiered in 2004 on Showtime, and revolved around a group of queer women living in West Hollywood – the twists and turns of the show and their love, personal, and professional lives made for some captivating and truthful television viewing.
Held a trailblazing show, this was the easily the first show to revolve completely around Queer women, unlike male-dominated LBGT shows like Queer as Folk, and Will And Grace.
While the majority of the principle characters identified as lesbian, The L Word also contained bisexual, transgender and straight characters. Additionally, a major character came out at Transgender, and the show chronicled their transition.
While Ilene Chaiken and the team behind The L Word would like to bring a reboot to their audience, it would be quite the feat to actually accomplish it.
Many of the people who helped make The L Word so great have gone on to busy entertainment careers.
Jennifer Beals has worked in a variety of leading roles, but most memorable for us is her starring role in the TV series The L Word.
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=d3-afsSCYEQ
In a recent interview with A.V Club, she discussed the importance of the show to herself:
That series was really very, very important for me as an actor and as a human being in the world, because it introduced me to this whole new world of badass people who were unapologetic as to who they were and who they loved.”
She went on to say:
I made some really lovely friends on the show, like Ilene Chaiken, who was just fantastic. She would encourage me to speak at these different LGBT events as to my experience of playing the character, and as a result, I was able to meet so many incredible activists who really kind of modelled for me how activism at its root is truly about speaking truth to power and getting as many people to speak that truth until power can no longer ignore what is righteous. That was hugely important for me to witness, because it engaged me in a very different way with social-justice issues, and it created this bridge eventually in my life to environmental-health issues, which is, in fact, a social-justice issue.
And on visibility and progression:
For me, when I started playing the character, when I saw the script for the pilot, I thought, “This would be amazing to have some girl somewhere in the middle of nowhere, who has no access to her tribe, really, see herself represented as a multiplicity in a mainstream media.” I thought that would be incredible.
To touch just one person with this story, I would’ve been happy. But for the show to have had – and to still have – the kind of following that it does is incredibly gratifying. There are no fans that are more loyal than The L Word fans. They’re so engaged and present.
And in regards to portrayal of Bette and her storyline, she added:
I got to play really, really interesting things, and it’s funny because before I received this script, I remember I was on a hike by myself—I’m always on a trail somewhere – and I was thinking, “What do I want to play?” I said, “I really want to play a great love story.
I want to play a great, profound, and beautiful love story.” Then this script arrived. [Laughs.] I hadn’t specified if it was going to be a heterosexual love story. I wasn’t specific in that request because it didn’t occur to me.
I wasn’t living in that mind set. But it was perfect: I got to play this great love story as this amazing character, and I got to be introduced to art in a different way, particularly contemporary art. I got to work with really great people, and I got to work with a group of women, which… You know, women don’t often get to work with other women. It just doesn’t happen very often.
Jennifer Beals has a new TV show coming to TNT, which is produced by Kyra Sedgwick and called Proof.
In a recent interview with ETonline, Beals talked about her new character, and whether she is open for The L Word return.
When ETonline asked about reviving her famous role in Flash Dance, Beals replied with promising nod to The L Word instead.
Who knows! Maybe! But you will probably sooner see another L Word!
She went on to say…
… people ask me quite often, “Is The L Word coming back?” You keep seeing shows like The X Files and Full House now being revamped and coming back to television, so you never know!”
The L Word was a landmark Showtime drama, which depicted the lives of a group of lesbian and bisexual women in West Hollywood. It ran for six seasons from 2004-2009. Beals appears as one of the main characters, Bette Porter, for all six seasons.
In her new show, Beals plays Dr. Cat Tyler, a brilliant yet arrogant surgeon who is struggling with the death of her son and the dissolution of her marriage.
Approached by a cancer-stricken wealthy inventor (Matthew Modine), he promises Cat his financial empire, funding all her side projects, if she examines the connection between life and death. She is then drawn into investigating cases of near-death experiences and reincarnation, hauntings and other phenomena.
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