Out actor Alan Cumming has praised CBS
for “having the courage” to broadcast a procedural crime drama
with a leading gay character.
Instinct, which premieres on
March 11, stars Cumming as a reluctant CIA agent searching for a
serial killer. Since leaving the agency his character has
successfully built a “normal” life as a professor and writer.
But he gets pulled back into the CIA when his unique talents are
needed to crack the case. The show is based on an upcoming book by
James Patterson.
Speaking at the show's TCA winter press
tour, Cumming said it's particularly important to see gay people on
television during President Donald Trump's administration.
“I applaud everyone at CBS for having
the courage to put that on, in the climate that might not be the best
time to do it,” Cumming
said.
Instinct arrives at a time when
“the president is actively condoning, by his silence, violence and
persecution against the LGBT community,” he said.
“I think it’s the perfect time and
needs to be done,” he added. “[It's] all that more important we
should have a character with a healthy same-sex marriage.”
CBS has previously been criticized for
its lack of diversity. Instinct is believed to be network
television's first hour-long drama with a gay lead character.