8 Reasons We Admire Ryan Murphy

  1. He’s the driving force behind shows such as Pose, 9-1-1, American Horror Story, Feud, Glee, Popular, and Nip/Tuck. The average score for these shows is 7, our TV show minimum rating to be recommended. It is unusual for a male-driven series to score this high, let alone an entire body of work.
  2. He features traditionally marginalized characters, including older women, people with disabilities, and those from the LGBTQ community, in central roles.
  3. His latest show, Pose, is making history by including five transgender women in series regular roles and a good amount of trans and LGBTQ talent behind the scenes.
  4. His show, American Horror Story, brought back the season-long anthology format paving the way for other series he’s involved with such as Feud and American Crime Story as well as those by other creators including Black Mirror and Electric Dreams.
  5. He recently signed a $300 million dollar deal with Netflix where he will produce new series and films. He’s done groundbreaking work at traditional networks so we’re looking forward to seeing what he does at Netflix. This follows another big Netflix deal for Shonda Rhimes, covered here.
  6. He started the Half Initiative with the goal of giving women, minorities and LGBTQ people opportunities behind the camera. Less than a year after its launch his company hired 60% women directors. One reason his shows consistently score well.
  7. He’s branched out to Broadway reviving The Boys in the Band which focuses on a group of gay men at a friend’s birthday party in NYC. This show was revolutionary in featuring gay men’s lives in an open, honest way at a time when acceptance was lower.
  8. He’s adding author to his impressive list of credentials with a book in the works called Ladies which will feature female icons.