The show has been called groundbreaking but the creators just call it ‘real life’.
Musical high school show Glee made headlines recently for their TV first decision to have a character announce they were transgender and going to transition to becoming male.
The much-loved character of Coach Beiste, played by Dot-Marie Jones, revealed to students (the cast) that he would be undergoing gender reassignment surgery in a January episode.
“Your outsides don’t match how you feel you are on the inside. … This isn’t about who I want to go to bed with – it’s who I want to go to bed as,” Coach said at the time.
Coach Beiste will reveal his new appearance on an upcoming episode of Glee, set to air in the US on February 13 but a still from the episode has been released early:
The internet and fans reacted accordingly, with the long-running show being dubbed ground-breaking and praised for its momentous decision. As it should.
Dot-Marie says of her character, “Like it or not, it’s real life. We know it will make a difference. Look at all the things that all the kids on our show have gone through, everything that Chris Colfer and Kurt have gone through. Of any show on broadcast, it should be a FOX show because they are the risk-takers. I don’t even thinking taking a risk is the right word. It’s just real.”
Read more: Before and After: Photos of gender reassignment surgery.
Watch the moment Coach Beiste revealed his decision below.
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Top Comments
This doesn't match the "never been kissed" storyline they did about Coach -where she lamented that despite her looks, she was still a girl and wanted to be thought of as pretty.
Nice storyline to have, but possibly should've used a different character.