Alice Pieszecki, Bette Porter and Shane McCutcheon are all back for the L Word reboot.
The L Word: Generation Q hits screens next month, and it has been revealed that the series will kick off with a bloody period sex scene.
The reboot of the iconic lesbian drama the L word, which premiered 15 years ago and aired from 2004 to 2009, will air on December 8 on Showtime.
Although details on the new show have been few and far between, we do know that Jennifer Beals, Katherine Moennig and Leisha Hailey will be reprising their respective roles as Bette Porter, Shane McCutcheon and Alice Pieszecki, alongside a swathe of younger cast members.
It was also hinted in the trailer that Bette would be running for mayor of Los Angeles and Alice would have her own talk show.
But now a review by Variety has revealed that the first scene of The L Word: Generation Q will show “explicit, bloody period sex”, suggesting that the show will be pushing boundaries as much as it did it 2004.
Although the original show was groundbreaking, there were some glaringly problematic storylines, for example the disastrous portrayal of trans man Max Sweeney.
According to Variety, the reboot is learning from its past mistakes and “tries hard not to fail” the new trans character of Micah. It adds, however, that trans women “remain as frustratingly marginal on Generation Q as they were on The L Word.”
Other details revealed are that Angelica, Bette and Tina’s daughter, will reappear in the show as a teenager and Shane, although “filthy rich”, will be going through a divorce.
Creator Ilene Chaiken previously revealed the upcoming revival was spurred into life when Donald Trump won the Presidency in 2016.
Chaiken explained at a press event: “We all felt there was a reason to bring the show back and it would be exciting and meaningful and I was waiting for the right time.
“But [the 2016 election] really provoked me to make the move and approach Showtime.”
Jennifer Beals agreed, explaining that she texted Chaiken as the 2016 election results came in to push for the revival.
She said: “We could see the tsunami coming… I think this administration has given people permission to say really hateful things, and they are perpetrating hateful things.
“We haven’t reached any kind of state of equality. The power of storytelling can help that issue.”