'American Gods' To Feature TV's Most Explicit Gay Sex Scene
- By
- On Top Magazine Staff
- | May 08, 2017
An upcoming episode of Starz's fantasy series American Gods will reportedly include television's most explicit gay sex scene yet.
The series is an adaptation of Neil Gaiman's 2001 novel of the same name. Its central premise is that gods and mythological creatures only exist when people believe in them. As such, new gods such as Technology, Celebrity and Media are overtaking old gods such as Love, and a battle is imminent. The gods walk among us, sometimes without knowing their own identities, sometimes posing as humans.
The Jinn (played by Mousa Kraish) is a mythological Middle Eastern god posing as a New York City taxi driver. When he picks up Salim (Omid Abtahi), who is repressing his sexuality, in his taxi, god and mortal head to a hotel to have sex.
“The Jinn comes into Salim's life to say, 'It's okay to be who you are,'” Kraish told Out magazine. “Now more than ever that story is incredibly powerful. The sex scene is so intense and intimate. I don't think anything like it has ever occurred on TV.”
Showrunners Bryan Fuller, who is out, and Michael Green called the storyline one of their favorites.
“We took great care and were very deliberate in how we brought that to life so it reflected the romance of the novel,” Fuller told Vice. “We also added a few notions about a particular gay experience, coming from a man who originates from a country where you can be thrown off a rooftop for being gay.”
Matt Brennan, TV editor for Paste Magazine, and Abraham Riesman, culture writer at New York Magazine, agree that the sex in American God's third episode breaks new ground.
“American Gods has the hottest gay sex scene I've seen on TV since Sense8, maybe ever,” Brennan tweeted. “It made my palms sweat.”
Riesman warned viewers in a tweet to “buckle up” for the “single hottest and most pornographic gay sex scene ever put on mainstream television.”
Starz will broadcast the episode on May 14.