NetflixsSpecialis a first for the streaming service, in terms of both its runtime and its star.
This wasnt how he initially envisioned his big acting debut, though.
I come from half-hour, he tells EW, referring to his background writing internet and cable TV shows.
Credit: Netflix
ButSpecialis, well, much more special to him.
As he says, Gay sex is a TED Talk.
I remember seeing it in a theater with my sister and feeling some kind of way.
Netflix
One of my co-workers wrotethe bigCruel Intentionsreunion for EW, and she talked to Ryan about that.
His ass is inDamages.
I keep tabs on his ass.
He was naked I think a year ago, and it still looks great.
No more thoughts left, honey!
Its the end of the road.
When I was told I would breeze through the show, they werent kidding.
The first couple episodes, it was just getting into a groove.
Really what it is, is you dont have any room for a C story.
Hopefully in the second season we can remedy that.
You didnt set out to make this as a 15-minute show, right?Right.
That was not the plan.
When we got to Stage 13 [at Warner Bros. Digital Networks], thats what they were doing.
They were doing digital short-form content.
It was a nice challenge because you have to be very economical as a writer.
You have space and you have room, honey.
This was very, very tight.
Every line had to account for something and progress the story in some way.
You didnt have a writers room for this either, so youre writing and editing at the same time.
What were some of the biggest challenges with that?It wasnt fun, Ill be honest with you.
And also, when my director came on, Anna Dokoza, she had amazing notes.
This used to have voice-over and looking back Im like, Oh my God, LOL.
I remember the first time when Anna Dokoza signed on, she sat me down and goes, Okay!
I think we can get rid of the voice-over.
It was a long, long process.
Theyre promoting us like wereGrace & Frankie.
Im getting billboards, honey.
Theyre not fing around.
I have to say I was really surprised.
That just feels incredible.
Theyre really rolling out the red carpet for this little gay disabled of a show.
I feel like Im getting asked to the dance.
Im like, Am I pretty, Mom?!
The great thing about Netflix is that they can make whatever they want.
And Netflix, theyre just trying sh.
Their notes were never mandates, ever, ever, ever.
Theyre just suggestions, and they were so collaborative.
I just feel like streaming has tapped into the zeitgeist in a delightful way.
Theyre commenting on our society in real time, where the big networks think five years behind.
And youre like, Oh my actual God.
Did you give a shot to pitchSpecialto any of the other mainstream networks?No, God no.
My agents wanted me to go to ABC and NBC and all that stuff, and I just didnt.
There are good shows on internet television.
Im writing forthe90210reboot, which is on Fox, and I think its going to be great.
So much of what my story is telling is like, gay sexuality!
And you cant do a show about a gay disabled person and not explore sex.
Thats such a huge part and I knew that wasnt going to fly on CBS.
I felt very protective over it.
It was a different time.
Was it an easier process than getting your book published?No!
Oh my God, no.
The book stuff was easy breezy.
That was no muss, no fuss.
It just took so long.
You describedSpeciala couple of times as a gay disabled show.
Was there ever a concern the show would be pigeonholed because of it?No.
And thats not even something you have to be conscious of because thats my life.
And that really struck me.Oh yeah, honey.
I felt that was, honestly, such a slap in the face.
My skin was singing hours afterwards.
I just felt like why is this such a fear about gay sex?
I dont fing get it.
I knew from the get-go that I really wanted to show gay sex in a very accurate way.
Everyone was on board.
No one ever pushed back on that, but also I was working with all gay men and women.
They were like, Yaaasss.
Im very proud of that scene and, honestly, its just the tip.
I cant wait to go deeper.
I feel the wayGirlsshowed sex was revolutionary.Wow, straight people havingbadsex.
And I feel like sex is a lot of things.
Sometimes it can be bad and good and funny and awkward in the span of two minutes.
Its a roller coaster, and I want to normalize gay sex likeGirlsnormalized sex for straight people.
I think back to high school and middle school, and they dont teach gay sex education.
I had a boyfriend my senior year of high school, not to brag.
I was like, Okay, were gonna f soon so I should figure out how this works.
It didnt really work.
I thought it was a cerebral palsy thing.
Is my ahole literally broken?
I remember Googling broken ahole gay sex.
It was really scary navigating the world of gay sex because I had no point of reference.
So I hope even a gay teen can watchSpecialand go, Oh, its okay.
Its a lot of, Is this okay?
It really is a dialogue, honey.
Gay sex is a TED Talk.
I felt like during filming I was regressing.
I wasnt that evolved of an actor to understand.
I was still in the muck, and that was hard.It was a little bit of a mindf.
Its just an interesting thing that is very relatable for everyone!
Was there a moment where everything clicked and you felt comfortable acting?The first day of shooting.
I know that sounds really weird.
