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Mark Indelicato says Glee’s Kurt should be stronger

From one who's been there, former Ugly Betty star Mark Indelicato comments on Chris Colfer's character in Glee.

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Former Ugly Betty star Mark Indelicato has spoken about the portrayal of gay characters on Glee, and says he would like to see Chris Colfer’s character of Kurt written with more strength.

Indelicato played Justin in the comedy series, a ground-breaking portrayal of a boy comfortable with his flamboyant characteristics. But as even Indelicato acknowleges, Justin didn’t come out until the penultimate episode, which contrasts strongly with Glee’s openly gay Kurt in series one.

“I just don’t understand why the gay character is portrayed as the weak link—or the person who can’t stand up for themselves,” says Indelicato.

“I think every gay character on TV—whether it be a boy or a girl, or even somebody questioning their sexuality—I would like to see them portrayed as stronger and more independent, not squeamish,” he adds.

No doubt writer Ryan Murphy, who has based many of Kurt’s plots on his own experiences, would argue that the character has a series arc and that set-ups are necessary for conflict and resolution.

Source: Latina.com

16 Responses

  1. as a gay guy who sees many gay teens seem to think they have to follow flamboyant or stereotypes to fit in, I think its time mainstream TV and film gave up making every single gay character flamboyant, effeminate or both.

  2. I have to agree with @Reesie about being over the Kurt storyline. In Season 1, he was a complicated sometimes bratty, very realistic teen who was dealing with his sexuality.

    In Season 2, it has become a weekly preaching session and all Kurt’s realistic flaws written away. Turning his character into a lesson for everyone to learn, and making any character in opposition to him ‘bad’ ruined what was a natural (for Glee) storyline. The demonizing of Finn for having conflicting issues about a gay step-brother who had in the past agressively persued him and the saint like treatment of Kurt at his Dad’s wedding was extremely one dimensional and disappointing to both sides.

  3. Interesting that the people who portray the two characters that people seem to dislike the most have both been nominated for Emmys and Golden Globes. They’re not going to be written out anytime soon….

  4. Cannot stand the character of Kurt on Glee – he is a clumsy caricature of a screaming queen and the sooner he is written off the show, the better. While the writers are getting rid of him, can they also push Rachel off a cliff? I hate Lea Michele’s screechy vocals.

  5. nearly every gay person on a TV series is a stereotype….how about some ‘rwal’ homosexuals on tv..the normal everyday bloke who happens to like other blokes, not the ‘queeny’ stereotypes of Kurt, Justin or the twinks from Queer as folk or the bears of Modern Family.

  6. im a huge Gleek, and completely against homophobia (No H8!) but im so damn over Kurt’s storyline. the whole “im gay and everybody is against me” thing is just lame now.

    i agree with Mark.
    also that Ryan Murphy is kinda imposing himself way too much on the character. I hope someday we can watch Glee without every week turning into a PSA.

  7. @Anthony Mai – there are lots of interesting and some successful films that have gay themes or plots. Google gay and lesbian cinema, and there are countless titles to explore and check out. For me films like Beautiful Thing, My beautiful Laundrette, Breakfast on pluto, Milk, Longtime companion, 50 ways of saying fabulous are just a few that I have been impressed and moved by. Even Queer as Folk. Six feet under have been integral in bringing gay and lesbian humans to the screen – not just ‘characters’ as you rightly report with Hollywood’s general treatment.

  8. As a gay guy I do get a bit disgruntled when you see a gay man on telly he is either sad and bullied and struggling to come to terms with himself (ie Chris from Neighbours) or self indulgent, over the top and “flamboyant” (Kurt from Glee, the kid from Ugly Betty, the Queer Eye guys).

    It’s like there are two extremes and you’re either one or the other. This is why I’m looking forward to the upcoming series The Slap. There’s a young gay character in that who is pretty flawed and multi-faceted – hopefully that will be handled well and be a step in showing something new.

    And look I saw the kid in Ugly Betty as a stereotype and Kurt as one as well. There may be moments or scenes where they give these guys an ounce or glimpse of depth, but at the end of the day they’re described as “flamboyant” and it’s all over red rover.

  9. What i have learned about homosexuals from shows like glee. Is that everything they say or do. Has to do with them expressing or mentioning that they are gay.

  11. Mark should be in Glee … it is a waste of a very talented young man!
    Get rid of Artie … he’s boring and has a very poor voice …
    And Please get rid of Rachel … she is just obnoxious and has an annoying squeaky voice.
    Britney is brilliant!

  12. All gay characters should be more like Barca from Spartacus: Blood and Sand and less like Kurt from Glee.

    Imagine how cool it would be if Kurt challenged his in-the-closet bully to a gladiator battle in the school auditorium and then promptly demolished him in sword-to-sword (no pun intended) combat.

  13. I agree with Mark. In Glee, the only “remedy” to anti-gay bullying is to run away to a private school. Not exactly a strong character, nor is possible for most bullied teens.

  14. Not every Gay character on t.v. can be portrayed the same way, same goes for straight characters. Just like in real life some people are strong and some are weak, t.v. shows tend to show the extremes.

  15. With Mark’s comments aside, as a gay teen myself I don’t like the character of Kurt.

    I can’t explain it exactly, but I feel that the character is so overdone that I can’t feel anything for him because of his caricatured-nature. He’s a ‘character’ and not a ‘person’, if you know what I mean. But then, Glee’s always OTT anyway…

    I feel like there has never been a film or tv show that has really portrayed what it is deep down for a gay or lesbian person from their own perspective. A lot goes on in one’s mind. Most of the time LBGT films and portrayals of those characters are orchestrated or done by heterosexuals. And even when that’s not the case, they still get it all wrong! I suppose American dramas are quite often not as realistic as they can be.

  16. Ridiculous!
    “I think every gay character on TV—[…] I would like to see them portrayed as stronger and more independent”
    Why? Can’t writers create whatever the hell type of character they want? Are there no weak, dependent gay people in real life?
    BTW, I reckon all doctor characters on TV should be left-handed… because… I just reckon!

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