Meet the Lesbian Co-Showrunner Queering Star Trek: Discovery
Bryan Fuller (gay) was original show creator along with Kurtzman. I stopped watching after season 3.
Oct news item: 'Star Trek' producer Bryan Fuller sued for sexual harassment
https://www.out.com/print/2022/2/11/meet-lesbian-co-showrunner-queering-star-trek-discovery
As evidenced by the profiles in Out's January/February issue, Star Trek: Discovery is one of television's queerest shows. Out space heroes like Hugh Culber (Wilson Cruz), Paul Stamets (Anthony Rapp), Adira Tal (Blu del Barrio), and Gray (Ian Alexander) routinely perform feats of derring-do aboard the U.S.S. Discovery. Behind the scenes and the camera, there are LGBTQ+ folks and allies ushering in a universe of rainbow representation for the long-running sci-fi franchise.
Michelle Paradise, in the captain's chair as Discovery's co-showrunner, helps guide the writers' room in crafting these groundbreaking storylines. Diversity is an imperative for her. "From the moment I've come on to help run the show, we've always talked about the need for and benefits of a diverse cast, and people being able to see themselves on-screen."
"That's very much in the tradition of the original series," she adds, noting how the Star Trek: The Original Series creator, Gene Roddenberry, went where no man had gone before, beaming a racially diverse cast into America's living rooms. But it wasn't until the 2017 Discovery premiere that out central characters would become canon: first, gay couple Culber and Stamets, then Adira and Gray, who are nonbinary and trans.
Paradise has brought LGBTQ+ representation to the screen before: her first developed show was Logo's Exes and Ohs (2007), which centered on a filmmaker, played by herself, navigating the intricacies of lesbian dating. She later became a staff writer on CW's The Originals, a spin-off of The Vampire Diaries, then joined the Discovery team in its second season. She was promoted to co-showrunner, alongside Discovery co-creator Alex Kurtzman, for the third season.
Discovery has had many out creatives: Bryan Fuller created the show with Kurtzman, and Aaron Harberts (Pushing Daisies) served as co-showrunner in season 1. Paradise credits ally Kurtzman with aiding in authentic LGBTQ+ casting: "Alex has championed all this from the beginning: queer characters being played by queer actors."