GLAAD: Transgender TV Representation Drops 79 Percent
The total number of LGBTQ characters on television fell by 25 percent over the last year, dropping from 489 to 369 characters, according to the annual Where We Are on TV report published by the advocacy group GLAAD.
Researchers said that this decline was driven primarily by a steep drop in transgender representation across scripted broadcast, cable, and streaming series.
GLAAD counted only seven transgender characters out of the 369 LGBTQ characters analyzed during the 2025–2026 television window, marking a 79 percent decrease from the 33 trans characters tracked the previous year. The organization’s film study released in July also found zero transgender characters among 225 movies distributed across 10 major studios.
Actors across the industry report that the drying up of auditions has severely impacted their livelihoods. Trace Lysette recalled reaching an apex with her role in the drama Monica, but said that major TV offers failed to materialize afterward, leaving her to describe the subsequent drought as a full-on ego death.
Saw that Jack Haven was about to lose SAG-Aftra health insurance…made a video and then “got a lot of offers” for jobs. I’d just like to say I lost my SAG health insurance 2 yrs ago which is why I had to find money elsewhere. Sooo, if anyone has a gig. Here is me asking for help…
“Everything I’d built, it just felt like: ‘Just kidding. We’re gonna take all that away from you,’” Lysette told The Guardian.
Other prominent performers have experienced similar downturns. Asia Kate Dillon wrote that acting work had become so scarce they were seeking service jobs, and Jack Haven made a public plea for work to qualify for Screen Actors Guild health insurance.
“This administration has enabled people’s implicit bias – it’s been OKed by the masses,” Lysette told The Guardian regarding the broader climate.
Despite the overall reduction in characters, GLAAD executives emphasized that audience demand for authentic queer storytelling remains high. Sarah Kate Ellis, GLAAD’s president and CEO, called the slashing of LGBTQ stories a bad business decision, pointing to the high viewership of titles like Heated Rivalry on HBO Max and The Hunting Wives on Netflix.
“Hollywood is slashing LGBTQ stories and characters even while demand is increasing,” Ellis said, according to PinkNews.
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