NBC Says New Sean Hayes Sitcom Is 'a Post-Gay Show'

The fact that the lead character in Sean Saves the World is gay and raising a child is an "afterthought," the actor says.

Lucas Grindley

Lucas Grindley is VP and Editorial Director for Here Media, which is parent company to The Advocate. His Twitter account is filled with politics, Philip Glass appreciation, and adorable photos of his twin toddler daughters.

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Lucas Grindley

July 28 2013 8:15 AM EST

November 17 2015 5:28 AM EST

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The new NBC sitcom starring Sean Hayes as a single gay dad is "a post-gay show," its creator told the Television Critics Association on Saturday.

Sean Saves the World's creator, Victor Fresco, made it clear that things have changed since Hayes played Jack in the groundbreaking NBC sitcom Will & Grace.

"Without Will & Grace, we would not be here right now," Fresco said, according to Deadline. "But I think of this as a post-gay show where there is a gay man at the center but it's not about his being gay."

For his part, Hayes described his character being gay as "an afterthought," according to Deadline.

Meanwhile, NBC Entertainment chairman Bob Greenblatt reportedly described Sean Saves the World as less "issue-oriented" than The New Normal, which told the story of a gay couple starting a family via surrogacy. That show was canceled after one season.

"It may have been slightly ahead of its time," Greenblatt said, according to The Hollywood Reporter. But, "We think the country is moving in the right direction; the Supreme Court made the right decision."