Russell T. Davies, the British TV creator behind Queer as Folk, the BBC's Doctor Who revival and recent hit Years and Years, has discussed only casting gay actors in the role of gay male characters.
Speaking to the Radio Times, Davies —whose latest show, HBO Max/Channel 4It's A Sin isset during the 1980s AIDS epidemic —stressed that "authenticity" was a crucial factor. "I’m not being woke about this… but I feel strongly that if I cast someone in a story, I am casting them to act as a lover, or an enemy, or someone on drugs or a criminal or a saint… they are not there to 'act gay' because 'acting gay' is a bunch of codes for a performance.