Fox’s new president Kevin Reilly

Fox Entertainment’s new president Kevin Reilly was put in the hot seat Monday during the Television Critics’ Association Press Tour in Los Angeles. Reilly was introducing Fox’s fall line-up on the same day that GLAAD was releasing its annual Network Responsibility Index report. The report excoriated Fox for its underepresentation of the GLBT community. In answer to questions about Fox’s failing grade, Reilly said “I can say that we’ve got several shows now moving forward with gay characters in them. Sometimes you’ve actually got great representation, and then for creative reasons or commercial reasons, something gets canceled and your numbers go down. That’s something we’re really committed to. In fact, we’re in production on a pilot right now, Virtuality, that Ron Moore and Michael Taylor created. Pete Berg is directing it. And it’s got a gay relationship that is as dimensional and as honest as anything I’ve ever seen portrayed on television. So if we move forward on that, I think that would end being something to really note.”

Virtuality, a sci-fi drama set on a spaceship, looks to be one of the breakouts of Fox’s upcoming season. According to the script breakdown, the couple in question are life partners Manny Rodriguez (Jose Pablo Cantillo), a mathematician, and Valentin “Val” Orlov (yet to be cast), a Russian geologist, who always seem to be bickering; Has a Fox show even featured a gay relationship since those two episodes of the OC where Marissa thought she was bisexual?

Ironically, Fox’s cable channel, F/X, came out on top of the GLAAD report. Of 62.5 total hours of original primetime programming, the network offered 28 hours (45%) with LGBT-inclusive content. Most of those shows were shepherded to the air by F/X’s former president, a guy named…Kevin Reilly. Hopefully, he’ll be able to bring his cable sensibilities to his new position at the network.

Link to GLAAD report: http://www.glaad.org/media/nri/