Smash alum Andy Mientus, who was cast in October to play Pied Piper on The Flash, admits the role of the gay supervillain carries with it a lot of pressure.
“With the gay thing, I feel like I’m representing a whole community,” Mientus, who became engaged earlier this year to fellow theater actor Michael Arden, tells Variety. “People are excited to see this character, so it is a lot of pressure. But I’m glad they are introducing the character to the show. It’s a huge step forward, and I’m thrilled to help make that happen. It’s awesome.”
Mientus reveals the costume for his two-episode appearance is black with a hood and a cape, and totally “badass.”
“With the gay thing, I feel like I’m representing a whole community,” Mientus, who became engaged earlier this year to fellow theater actor Michael Arden, tells Variety. “People are excited to see this character, so it is a lot of pressure. But I’m glad they are introducing the character to the show. It’s a huge step forward, and I’m thrilled to help make that happen. It’s awesome.”
Mientus reveals the costume for his two-episode appearance is black with a hood and a cape, and totally “badass.”
'Black with a hood and a cape'
ReplyDeleteSo the new 52 costume pretty much. Pre-New 52 it was this weird blackish-green color.
wait he's an actual pied piper, he calls rats to him?
ReplyDeleteHe uses sounds (sonic sounds in particular) to hypnotize humans. Due to his time in jail, he perfected his abilities to also work on rats.
ReplyDeleteThe casting director needs a raise
ReplyDeleteGood pn The Flash for using a gay villain from the comics and adding diversity.
ReplyDeleteBTW, I know that sometimes a cigar is just a cigar... but the random mention that the Police Captain is gay in the crossover ep got me thinking. Is it possible he has a romantic past with the Pied Piper?
I'm pretty sure the Pied Pipper is the captain's boyfriend he was talking about.
ReplyDeleteThat would be cool. I also thought that maybe Alan Scott could be the Captain's boyfriend if at some point they want to bring one of the Green Lanterns.
ReplyDeleteI think it is quite possible there are TOO many gay characters on these DC shows, especially when they are being over represented based on their percentage representation in America...which last I read was about 15%...And yes I applaud the social reasons for a "higher" representation, but one can not deny the fact it might be costing them viewers if "middle America" believes these shows are going to far. And I aim this directly at Gotham...
ReplyDeleteThe new 52 comics Pied Piper AKA Hartley Rathaway is reformed and an ally of Barry and dating David Singh so it's entirely possible that he's the boyfriend he mentioned. Or he will be his boyfriend in the future.
ReplyDeleteGothams ratings fell and actually increased before the midseason finale so l think Gothams audience doesn't really care .
ReplyDeleteThe flash ,I doubt fans care they know who the Piper is in the comics , middle america in my opinion hasn't really had much power on that front since lm sure some middle americans watch shows with gay characters even if they complain, its human nature people being against violence , s , or even other peoples sexual orientation and drugs does not mean they wont watch it. They may even hate watch it , there was a time when even kissing scenes were too much for people but now thats not a big deal , people get used to it.
Fox knows this clearly even CBS , the recent success of cable networks like HBO which show explicits scenes is an example l bet middle americans probably watch Game of thrones even if they do so secretly.
If The Flash doesn't end up killing yet another important villain as they've done already, I could see Pied Piper reforming and be in a relationship with Singh. Right now, though, I think the writers are just dropping the breadcrumbs as in having Singh mention a boyfriend so the audience who aren't reading the comics are aware that Singh is gay and that's a possibility, if the shows goes that route.
ReplyDeleteRight now, I think Pied Piper and Singh aren't even aware of each other at the moment. It was be out of character for the police captain to be in a relationship with someone who intends to try and harm Dr. Wells in due time.
You're joking, right?
ReplyDeleteOn Gotham, there is one gay and one bisexual character. They're both in the regular cast, but neither is one of the main characters and both have missed certain episodes. 2 characters out of 13, so that's not even the 10% that is generally believed to be in society.
The regular cast of The Flash, comprising of 7 characters, has NO gay or bisexual characters. They have one recurring gay character, and are going to add one (the Pied Piper discussed here) - currently only for two episodes. Wow.
Arrow has a regular cast of 8 characters, and again - all are straight. They have one recurring gay character, and killed off their one recurring bisexual character.
Constantine is about a hero who was, in fact, bisexual in at least some iterations of the comics, but that fact isn't addressed in the series, and as far as I know there are no other gay or bisexual characters (I don't watch it).
I'm not trying to attack you, I realize you aren't homophobic or anything, but please take a moment to consider these numbers. Gay and bi characters are still far and few between, and it's frankly astounding to hear someone claim that this group is being OVER-represented. It's sad that some people seem to think the acceptable quota is one gay character who gets 10 minutes of screentime per season.
Seriously, the idea that a show would live or die by what "middle America" thinks makes no sense. Even American soap operas, which cater to an older, more conservative audience than primetime shows, have begun to feature gay characters and relationships and I don't see that hurting their ratings. Days of Our Lives shows their gay male couple kissing constantly and has shown them half-naked in bed or the shower multiple times, and they're fine. On the primetime front, How To Get Away With Murder has given its main gay character some fairly raunchy sex scenes and remains one of the biggest hits of the season. Modern Family has a gay couple and is one of highest-rated shows on network TV. I could go on... point is, the group of people who are anti-gay enough to stop watching a show because of gay characters, kisses or love scenes is not NEARLY large enough to make a difference. In this day and age, there's no justification for a show to avoid gay characters or same-sex romances for fear of backlash.
ReplyDeleteHmmm,,, do we know if the Piper is obsessed with healthy food? :)
ReplyDeleteTotally agree Alex shows like How to get away with murder which is probably ABC's highest rated new show this season validates what middle America thinks has no bearings on a shows success or failure.
ReplyDelete