First gay kiss on tv

Men were kissing in primetime long before daytime finally got on board, but the soaps caught up in when As the World Turns featured the first-ever gay kiss between two male characters, Luke. The CW. From that moment forward, the landscape shifted. The brief scene was filled with courage and vulnerability, full of real and raw energy.

That brief kiss opened the closet doors of queer teen storylines we see today.

Landmark LGBT TV moments

Ellie's moment of romance amid a desolate world still shared that Dawson's Creek essence, full of vulnerability and unflinching honesty. Discover Kai's journey of self-discovery and embracing queerness beyond labels. Of course, the Creek was a primetime soap that didn't entirely reflect the real world.

A personal story of identity, acceptance, and growth. There have been several landmark moments for homosexual visibility on television over the years, such as the first gay kiss, which was broadcast in LGBT representation on TV through the ages – from EastEnders’ first gay kiss to transgender superheroes.

For many queer teens watching, it was the first time we'd seen ourselves genuinely reflected, without caricature or comedic sidekick status, in a scene that mirrored our deepest hopes and fears.

How one gay kiss

But let's never underestimate the power of the "first. TV execs realized queer stories weren't just groundbreaking—they were necessary. By continuing to use our site, you agree to our Privacy Policy and Terms of Use. Picture it: May 24, The millennium had just dawned, Britney Spears was still a girl, not yet a woman, and the world of teen television was about to serve us an iconic queer pop culture moment we'd never forget.

Dawson's Creeknotorious for angsty teens discussing existential dilemmas with a vocabulary beyond their years, showed the first passionate kiss between two men on primetime network television. However, the essence of that groundbreaking moment in the fictional Massachusetts town has been woven into every storyline since then.

Jack McPhee, the charming, gay heartthrob played by Kerr Smith, made history when he shared a heartfelt and unabashed kiss with Ethanportrayed by Adam Kaufman. But even more importantly, the show taught us that queer teens deserve to see their experiences woven seamlessly into the fabric of pop culture.

In a Entertainment Weekly articleKerr Smith admitted that, while proud of helping to "break TV taboos," he drew the line at same-sex snogging once a year. The power of Jack's kiss has even rippled through genres beyond teen drama. I grew up in a religious Christian household.

Jack wasn't comic relief; he wasn't a cautionary tale. He was a teenage boy navigating love, rejection, and self-discovery in the season finale, just like every other character on the show. With one groundbreaking scene, Dawson's Creek established a legacy that enabled queer teen love stories to flourish boldly in mainstream media.

Unlike Dawson's CreekRyan Murphy's Glee presented queer romance with exuberance, complete with show-stopping musical numbers and dazzling theatrically. Netflix's hit series, Sitting gaycaptured the innocence of first love.

Today's viewers, steeped and versed in diverse queer representation, might see Jack and Ethan's kiss as tame, perhaps even quaint, by compasrsion.