The “nonbinary” creator of the woke “A League of Their Own” series on Amazon is claiming that the show was canceled after just one season because queer people are “under attack.”
The creator, Will Graham, also claimed that Amazon recommended he make the show “less gay,” at least in the first season, but he rejected the advice.
The show was based on the iconic 1992 film of the same name, which was about a women’s baseball league formed during World War II. Instead of focusing on their spouses being away at war, Graham turned many characters into lesbians — complete with sex scenes and an underground gay bar.
Last week, Amazon Studios announced that they would be canceling the show entirely — squashing a previous deal to allow an abbreviated second season of four episodes.
Graham addressed the cancellation in a lengthy thread on X, the platform formerly known as Twitter.
Instead of taking responsibility for the show tanking, he blamed society.
“To the League fans, We found out this news along with you on Friday. I see the pain and anger and worry out there, which for the LGBTQIA+ fans of the show is of course compounded by what’s happening across the country right now,” Graham began.
But, in a time when all queer people are personally and politically under attack across the country and HRC has declared a “state of emergency,” my biggest fear is that the many queer fans of League will take this reversal as one more invalidation, one more blow, one more…
— Will Graham (@WillWGraham) August 23, 2023
“I want to talk about what happens if the world didn’t quite change quickly enough for you to have all the seasons of this show that we want to give you,” Graham wrote in a subsequent post. “If we don’t find a good path forward, I will still know that League did what it came here to do and, in its own small way, changed the world.”
Graham continued on to discuss how cast members are frequently approached by fans and claimed that the show has created a community through the fandom.
“But, in a time when all queer people are personally and politically under attack across the country and HRC has declared a ‘state of emergency,’ my biggest fear is that the many queer fans of League will take this reversal as one more invalidation, one more blow, one more effect of the general politicization of our identities. Most of us grew up feeling invisible, and as we gain strength, the predictable backlash forces are trying their hardest to get us to go back underground,” Graham wrote, referring to the far-left Human Rights Campaign which has put out a “state of emergency” over bills aimed at stopping child sex changes and protecting women’s sports.
If you want to read this in one go, here it is. #ALeagueOfTheirOwn pic.twitter.com/vZw2bLIXit
— Will Graham (@WillWGraham) August 23, 2023
The creator said that he was warned to keep the show a bit more familiar but is happy that he didn’t — even if it got the show canned.
“We got so many notes wondering if the exploration of the queer world of the 1940s or Max’s world would be better saved for season 2, if people needed to start somewhere a little more familiar. I’m so glad we didn’t listen, cause now I’m sitting here without any regrets,” he wrote.
