Justin Taylor
Encyclopedia
Justin Taylor is a fictional character
from the American
/Canadian
Showtime television series Queer as Folk
, a drama about the lives of a group of gay
men and women living in Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania
.
The character was portrayed by American
actor Randy Harrison
during the show's five year run, and is based on Nathan Maloney of Russell T Davies' original British
series of the same name
. Known for his optimism and cheery disposition, Justin is a gay teenager who seeks out a gay community
in his hometown of Pittsburgh. After losing his virginity
to Brian Kinney
during his senior year of high school
, Justin falls in love with Brian, and their relationship becomes a central part of the series. Many of Justin's storylines revolve around his desire for a more committed relationship with Brian; in later seasons, the character's storylines begin to focus more on his developing career as an artist
.
In 2007, the character was voted number 3 on the list of the top 25 gay television characters of all time by AfterElton.
, Pennsylvania
. His father, Craig Taylor, owns an electronics business called Taylor Electronics, and his mother, Jennifer, is a real estate agent. During the first season, Justin's parents struggle to come to terms with their son's homosexuality. His father kicks him out of the house, and Justin remains estranged from his father for the rest of the series. While his mother Jennifer takes a little time to understand her son, after several months, she becomes supportive of Justin and becomes involved in PFLAG.
Justin is teased by many of the male students at his school who suspect he is gay, and he spends most of his time with his best friend Daphne Chanders. He excels at school and desires to be an artist
. After meeting Brian Kinney
, Justin is brought into Brian's circle of friends, with Michael Novotny's mother, Debbie Novotny, soon treating Justin as another son. Justin appreciates romance and aspires to be monogamous with Brian; in later seasons, he mentions wanting to get married and have a family. Justin attends the Pittsburgh Institute of Fine Arts and works on the Rage comic book
with Michael.
He confides in his best friend Daphne. Late in Season 1, she asks him to be the boy to take her virginity, since he is experienced. He agrees, and she falls in love with him the same way Justin fell in love with Brian. However, Justin shoots down her advances, and although it led to an altercation, they went back to being friends.
Justin tries a number of things to get Brian to love him back, including competing in (and winning) the "King of Babylon" contest, stealing one of Brian's tricks, and dancing with guys Brian is interested in, and asking Brian to the prom, among other things. Despite initially turning Justin down, Brian shows up at Justin's prom and dances with him, kissing him in front of everybody. Justin described it as "the best night of [his] life." After his prom, he is bashed by a fellow student, Chris Hobbs, resulting in a two week-long coma, and brain damage that causes limited use of his hand. This event has impacted his life immensely and its effects are seen throughout the series.
Justin is accepted to Dartmouth College
but opts to go to the Pittsburgh Institute of Fine Arts to pursue his dreams. With Justin's diminished use of his drawing hand, Brian gets a drawing computer for Justin to use. He continues his arts degree at PIFA and with Brian's friend Michael Novotny, creates a gay superhero comic called Rage, with stories often based on their own lives.
He experiences financial trouble when his father refuses to pay for his tuition. He resorts to becoming a go-go dancer at Babylon, despite Brian's repeated offers to help him out financially. Justin's new job takes its toll on him, the night shift causing him to lack energy during the daytime. After a disastrous experience at a party he was forced to accompany his boss to, where a number of men tried to rape him, he finally quits his job and accepts Brian's financial assistance. Justin starts a relationship with Ethan Gold, a fellow student and talented violinist, when he feels Brian isn't giving him the love and affection he wants. After Ethan cheats on him with a fan, Justin takes Daphne's advice and tries to win Brian back by getting a placement at Brian's advertisement agency. After a few tense weeks, Justin finally manages to seduce Brian once more in his office late one night. This sparks them to reconcile and continue their relationship.
On more than one occasion, Justin has saved Brian from legal problems. The first time, he blackmailed Kip into dropping the sexual harassment lawsuit against Vanguard and Brian. The second time, while he is still with Ethan, he makes Brian's nephew tell the truth about whether or not he had molested him. Justin drops out of college after a disagreement with the head of the internship program after it is discovered that he has been having sexual relations with his boss, Brian, and sabotaging Chief Jim Stockwell's ad campaign.
During the fifth and final season, Brian and Justin's relationship becomes more unstable. Justin works on a movie version of "Rage" but the project is canceled. When Justin returns from Los Angeles
and moves back in with Brian, he expects them to settle down, which Brian still doesn't want to. He leaves Brian, but after a bomb explosion at Babylon, Brian admits his love for Justin, asking him to marry him. They plan to get married, but as the date draws closer, Justin realizes that Brian is trying to become someone he isn't, just to make Justin happy. Similarly, Brian realizes that Justin is giving up his career as an artist to settle down with him. Brian tells him that he should go to New York City
to pursue his art career. They agree to call off the wedding, saying "we don't need rings or vows to prove that we love each other."
they agree to call of the wedding when they both say that neither of them wants to live with someone who would give up their lives to be with them.
Before leaving, Brian and Justin spend one final night together. Brian tells Justin that he's kept the rings, and Justin reassures Brian that they will continue to see each other frequently.
The site called him "one of television’s most fully realized gay teenaged characters, Justin Taylor was 17 years old when Queer as Folk debuted. Over the five seasons the show ran, he started a Gay-Straight Alliance at his high school, was brutally gay-bashed at his prom, had to learn how to use his right hand again during his first year of art school, created a successful underground gay comic, fought the election of a homophobic mayor, opposed an anti-gay statewide ballot proposition, achieved acclaim as an artist, and oh yeah – won the heart of the guy who claimed not to have one, Brian Kinney. Portrayed by out gay actor Randy Harrison, Justin was never one for agonizing over his sexual orientation or struggling with coming out. He may have made a couple of soapy detours through a brief career as a go-go boy and as a member of a gay vigilante group, but Justin Taylor was the first out, proud, and politically active gay teen on American series television."
Fictional character
A character is the representation of a person in a narrative work of art . Derived from the ancient Greek word kharaktêr , the earliest use in English, in this sense, dates from the Restoration, although it became widely used after its appearance in Tom Jones in 1749. From this, the sense of...
from the American
United States
The United States of America is a federal constitutional republic comprising fifty states and a federal district...
/Canadian
Canada
Canada is a North American country consisting of ten provinces and three territories. Located in the northern part of the continent, it extends from the Atlantic Ocean in the east to the Pacific Ocean in the west, and northward into the Arctic Ocean...
Showtime television series Queer as Folk
Queer as Folk (US TV series)
Queer as Folk is an American and Canadian television series co-production, produced by Showtime and Temple Street Productions, which was based on the British series of the same name, created by Russell T Davies...
, a drama about the lives of a group of gay
Homosexuality
Homosexuality is romantic or sexual attraction or behavior between members of the same sex or gender. As a sexual orientation, homosexuality refers to "an enduring pattern of or disposition to experience sexual, affectional, or romantic attractions" primarily or exclusively to people of the same...
men and women living in Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania
Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania
Pittsburgh is the second-largest city in the US Commonwealth of Pennsylvania and the county seat of Allegheny County. Regionally, it anchors the largest urban area of Appalachia and the Ohio River Valley, and nationally, it is the 22nd-largest urban area in the United States...
.
The character was portrayed by American
United States
The United States of America is a federal constitutional republic comprising fifty states and a federal district...
actor Randy Harrison
Randy Harrison
Randolph Clarke Harrison is an American actor best known for his portrayal of Justin Taylor on the Showtime drama Queer as Folk.-Early life and college:...
during the show's five year run, and is based on Nathan Maloney of Russell T Davies' original British
United Kingdom
The United Kingdom of Great Britain and Northern IrelandIn the United Kingdom and Dependencies, other languages have been officially recognised as legitimate autochthonous languages under the European Charter for Regional or Minority Languages...
series of the same name
Queer as Folk (UK TV series)
Queer as Folk is a 1999 British television series that chronicles the lives of three gay men living in Manchester's gay village around Canal Street. Both Queer as Folk and Queer as Folk 2 were written by Russell T Davies...
. Known for his optimism and cheery disposition, Justin is a gay teenager who seeks out a gay community
Gay community
The gay community, or LGBT community, is a loosely defined grouping of LGBT and LGBT-supportive people, organizations and subcultures, united by a common culture and civil rights movements. These communities generally celebrate pride, diversity, individuality, and sexuality...
in his hometown of Pittsburgh. After losing his virginity
Virginity
Virginity refers to the state of a person who has never engaged in sexual intercourse. There are cultural and religious traditions which place special value and significance on this state, especially in the case of unmarried females, associated with notions of personal purity, honor and worth...
to Brian Kinney
Brian Kinney
Brian Kinney is a fictional character from the American/Canadian Showtime television series Queer as Folk, a drama about the lives of a group of gay men and women living in Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania. The character was portrayed by American actor Gale Harold during the show's five year run...
during his senior year of high school
High school
High school is a term used in parts of the English speaking world to describe institutions which provide all or part of secondary education. The term is often incorporated into the name of such institutions....
, Justin falls in love with Brian, and their relationship becomes a central part of the series. Many of Justin's storylines revolve around his desire for a more committed relationship with Brian; in later seasons, the character's storylines begin to focus more on his developing career as an artist
Artist
An artist is a person engaged in one or more of any of a broad spectrum of activities related to creating art, practicing the arts and/or demonstrating an art. The common usage in both everyday speech and academic discourse is a practitioner in the visual arts only...
.
In 2007, the character was voted number 3 on the list of the top 25 gay television characters of all time by AfterElton.
Background and personality
In the pilot episode, Justin Taylor is a high school student at St. James Academy, a private school in PittsburghPittsburgh, Pennsylvania
Pittsburgh is the second-largest city in the US Commonwealth of Pennsylvania and the county seat of Allegheny County. Regionally, it anchors the largest urban area of Appalachia and the Ohio River Valley, and nationally, it is the 22nd-largest urban area in the United States...
, Pennsylvania
Pennsylvania
The Commonwealth of Pennsylvania is a U.S. state that is located in the Northeastern and Mid-Atlantic regions of the United States. The state borders Delaware and Maryland to the south, West Virginia to the southwest, Ohio to the west, New York and Ontario, Canada, to the north, and New Jersey to...
. His father, Craig Taylor, owns an electronics business called Taylor Electronics, and his mother, Jennifer, is a real estate agent. During the first season, Justin's parents struggle to come to terms with their son's homosexuality. His father kicks him out of the house, and Justin remains estranged from his father for the rest of the series. While his mother Jennifer takes a little time to understand her son, after several months, she becomes supportive of Justin and becomes involved in PFLAG.
Justin is teased by many of the male students at his school who suspect he is gay, and he spends most of his time with his best friend Daphne Chanders. He excels at school and desires to be an artist
Artist
An artist is a person engaged in one or more of any of a broad spectrum of activities related to creating art, practicing the arts and/or demonstrating an art. The common usage in both everyday speech and academic discourse is a practitioner in the visual arts only...
. After meeting Brian Kinney
Brian Kinney
Brian Kinney is a fictional character from the American/Canadian Showtime television series Queer as Folk, a drama about the lives of a group of gay men and women living in Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania. The character was portrayed by American actor Gale Harold during the show's five year run...
, Justin is brought into Brian's circle of friends, with Michael Novotny's mother, Debbie Novotny, soon treating Justin as another son. Justin appreciates romance and aspires to be monogamous with Brian; in later seasons, he mentions wanting to get married and have a family. Justin attends the Pittsburgh Institute of Fine Arts and works on the Rage comic book
Comic book
A comic book or comicbook is a magazine made up of comics, narrative artwork in the form of separate panels that represent individual scenes, often accompanied by dialog as well as including...
with Michael.
Overview
Brian meets Justin, a virgin, outside the gay club Babylon, and takes him home to have sex with him. Justin is responsible for naming Gus, Brian and Lindsay's biological son. After their encounter, Justin falls in love with Brian and eventually gets Brian to have sex with him again, breaking Brian's own rule of not having sex with the same person more than once. This causes Brian's best friend Michael to become jealous and act hostile towards Justin.He confides in his best friend Daphne. Late in Season 1, she asks him to be the boy to take her virginity, since he is experienced. He agrees, and she falls in love with him the same way Justin fell in love with Brian. However, Justin shoots down her advances, and although it led to an altercation, they went back to being friends.
Justin tries a number of things to get Brian to love him back, including competing in (and winning) the "King of Babylon" contest, stealing one of Brian's tricks, and dancing with guys Brian is interested in, and asking Brian to the prom, among other things. Despite initially turning Justin down, Brian shows up at Justin's prom and dances with him, kissing him in front of everybody. Justin described it as "the best night of [his] life." After his prom, he is bashed by a fellow student, Chris Hobbs, resulting in a two week-long coma, and brain damage that causes limited use of his hand. This event has impacted his life immensely and its effects are seen throughout the series.
Justin is accepted to Dartmouth College
Dartmouth College
Dartmouth College is a private, Ivy League university in Hanover, New Hampshire, United States. The institution comprises a liberal arts college, Dartmouth Medical School, Thayer School of Engineering, and the Tuck School of Business, as well as 19 graduate programs in the arts and sciences...
but opts to go to the Pittsburgh Institute of Fine Arts to pursue his dreams. With Justin's diminished use of his drawing hand, Brian gets a drawing computer for Justin to use. He continues his arts degree at PIFA and with Brian's friend Michael Novotny, creates a gay superhero comic called Rage, with stories often based on their own lives.
He experiences financial trouble when his father refuses to pay for his tuition. He resorts to becoming a go-go dancer at Babylon, despite Brian's repeated offers to help him out financially. Justin's new job takes its toll on him, the night shift causing him to lack energy during the daytime. After a disastrous experience at a party he was forced to accompany his boss to, where a number of men tried to rape him, he finally quits his job and accepts Brian's financial assistance. Justin starts a relationship with Ethan Gold, a fellow student and talented violinist, when he feels Brian isn't giving him the love and affection he wants. After Ethan cheats on him with a fan, Justin takes Daphne's advice and tries to win Brian back by getting a placement at Brian's advertisement agency. After a few tense weeks, Justin finally manages to seduce Brian once more in his office late one night. This sparks them to reconcile and continue their relationship.
On more than one occasion, Justin has saved Brian from legal problems. The first time, he blackmailed Kip into dropping the sexual harassment lawsuit against Vanguard and Brian. The second time, while he is still with Ethan, he makes Brian's nephew tell the truth about whether or not he had molested him. Justin drops out of college after a disagreement with the head of the internship program after it is discovered that he has been having sexual relations with his boss, Brian, and sabotaging Chief Jim Stockwell's ad campaign.
During the fifth and final season, Brian and Justin's relationship becomes more unstable. Justin works on a movie version of "Rage" but the project is canceled. When Justin returns from Los Angeles
Los Ángeles
Los Ángeles is the capital of the province of Biobío, in the commune of the same name, in Region VIII , in the center-south of Chile. It is located between the Laja and Biobío rivers. The population is 123,445 inhabitants...
and moves back in with Brian, he expects them to settle down, which Brian still doesn't want to. He leaves Brian, but after a bomb explosion at Babylon, Brian admits his love for Justin, asking him to marry him. They plan to get married, but as the date draws closer, Justin realizes that Brian is trying to become someone he isn't, just to make Justin happy. Similarly, Brian realizes that Justin is giving up his career as an artist to settle down with him. Brian tells him that he should go to New York City
New York City
New York is the most populous city in the United States and the center of the New York Metropolitan Area, one of the most populous metropolitan areas in the world. New York exerts a significant impact upon global commerce, finance, media, art, fashion, research, technology, education, and...
to pursue his art career. They agree to call off the wedding, saying "we don't need rings or vows to prove that we love each other."
they agree to call of the wedding when they both say that neither of them wants to live with someone who would give up their lives to be with them.
Before leaving, Brian and Justin spend one final night together. Brian tells Justin that he's kept the rings, and Justin reassures Brian that they will continue to see each other frequently.
Recognition
In 2007, Taylor was voted number 3 on the list of the top 25 gay television characters of all time by AfterEllen's brother site AfterElton.The site called him "one of television’s most fully realized gay teenaged characters, Justin Taylor was 17 years old when Queer as Folk debuted. Over the five seasons the show ran, he started a Gay-Straight Alliance at his high school, was brutally gay-bashed at his prom, had to learn how to use his right hand again during his first year of art school, created a successful underground gay comic, fought the election of a homophobic mayor, opposed an anti-gay statewide ballot proposition, achieved acclaim as an artist, and oh yeah – won the heart of the guy who claimed not to have one, Brian Kinney. Portrayed by out gay actor Randy Harrison, Justin was never one for agonizing over his sexual orientation or struggling with coming out. He may have made a couple of soapy detours through a brief career as a go-go boy and as a member of a gay vigilante group, but Justin Taylor was the first out, proud, and politically active gay teen on American series television."
External links
- Justin Taylor on Showtime's official website.