Law & Order: SVU just had its newest character come out as bisexual in the best way
Kat in Law & Order: SVU (Twitter)
Law & Order: SVU fans were delighted by the way new character Kat Tamin casually came out as bisexual in the season 21 finale.
The character’s sexuality was revealed when she was talking to another character, Amanda Rollins, about her plans for the evening.
Kat opened up a dating app, showed Amanda her options and asked: “What do you think? Gene or Gina?”
Jamie Gray Hyder, who plays Kat in the award-winning series, said it was important to her that they mentioned Kat’s sexuality in a casual way.
“I think that kind of bringing it up in this very casual way is important because it doesn’t need to stand out,” she told E! News.
I think that now is a better time than ever to present a member of this community in a way that reminds you that we’re all the same and that we’re all human beings.
“I think by it not totally standing out to the members of the squad, it really will help the community with acceptance when it comes to that community.
“Because sadly in the last year, the support for the LGBTQ community has eroded. You can see it in statistics and in surveys. It’s scary and it’s sad.”
Law & Order: SVU actor said playing a bisexual character ‘comes with a lot of responsibility.’
Hyder added: “I think that now is a better time than ever to present a member of this community in a way that reminds you that we’re all the same and that we’re all human beings.”
The introduction of an openly LGBT+ character in the hit series is long overdue. The last queer character, Dr George Huang, left the show in its twelfth season.
Hyder said she and the writers wanted to show “a full human being” in their depiction of a bisexual character.
“It’s a choice that I definitely take very seriously and comes with a lot of responsibility, I think.”
She added: “I, Jamie, have been intimate both with men and women in my life and so I can definitely understand the idea of being attracted to people without needing to fully choose one gender for instance. I can understand that.”
