Queer worldbuilding in mainstream Anglophone television

This article explores the representation of LGBTQ+ characters on Anglophone television and theorises the emergence of the ‘queer storyworld’ across markets of the US, UK, Australia, and Canada from the 1990s to the 2020s. Bringing queer theory and television studies into dialogue, we conceptualise queer televisual worldbuilding as a mode of representation that foregrounds ensembles of LGBTQ+ characters and situates them within distinctly queer community contexts. We trace a shift from early portrayals of singular, isolated LGBTQ+ characters to the emergence of diverse queer friendship groups in television narratives. Building on this, we analyse how mainstream televisual storytelling has moved beyond simplified ‘coming out’ narratives to depict more complex and nuanced representations of queer experiences and communities. We then investigate how LGBTQ+ characters and narratives are situated within distinctly queer settings, and how these spaces contribute to the construction of televisual worlds. Finally, we consider the role of authorship, highlighting how an ‘out’ authorial presence shapes the development and legitimation of queer ensemble dramas and comedies. Ultimately, we argue that queer storyworlds harness television’s worldbuilding capacity to imagine queer worlds, offering audiences complex representations of LGBTQ+ life.