How do you feel about the TV writer Ryan Murphy?

[u/Crafter235]

If you didn’t fully know, he is also the creator of Glee, American Horror Story, Ratchet, Monsters, Nip and Tuck, and Dahmer.

Personally, I never really liked him, and kind of view him as a “Pick-Me” kind of person. Many have praised him for including queer characters in his shows, but beyond that, it honestly feels shallow and exploitative, and the reason he keeps his job is because whenever someone points it out, the studios can say “Don’t worry, it’s by a gay man”, and that he uses his sexuality as an excuse to exploit (other) queer stories for his own gain. In addition, despite claiming he gives queer people a voice, it also feels like he just panders to faux progressives and people who view queer folk as objects.

At least as there’s better and more queer rep and media by other queer creators, the bar is rising, and more people see Murphy for who he truly is.

[u/FirmLifeguard5906]

I sometimes think he's more of a negative representation for the community versus a positive

[u/cartoonsarcasm]

I wanna start off by saying his work, from Scream Queens, AHS, Pose, but especially AHS, saved my life; these helped me figure out part of who I was as a queer person, have so many aspects to it that I both love and identify with as a queer person (not the atrocities lol), and in spite of the plotholes and immoral insanity contained within some of them, find these to be very compelling works. They've taken me through emotional journeys I have never had before. 

But Ryan Murphy is a terrible human being; he's everything wrong with and exploitative about True Crime, has shown support for Israel, allegedly crossed the writers' strike picket line and threatened to sue those calling him out on it, and has been called out by both Angelica Ross and Janet Mock for not doing enough, and then pulling the "But I've done so much you for you" BS. 

I understand those who choose not to interact with his work, not just because of his behavior, but because his worst qualities very much seep into his work. The whole Menendez debacle being one of the very worst examples, but looking back I cannot goddamn believe some of the shit he just... puts in his work. Just puts it in there. Like bro.

[u/cartoonsarcasm → u/cartoonsarcasm]

Quite frankly, I feel Jim Parson's Hollywood storyline, particularly with the forgiving end, was him telling on himself, but I don’t have enough proof for that, so I'm not gonna speculate, just side-eye. 

[u/haneulk7789]

He's good at what he does. Hes not creating fine art, hes making pulp television shows. The shallowness isn't a bug its a feature.

[u/TeamBunnyGirl]

He makes good schlock, but usually toons out after the second season so all his shows kinda fizzle out.

I do have issues with some of his work, I don’t like him sexualizing real life murders for example, but there’s like a million show runners far more problematic than him.

[u/WeedFinderGeneral → u/TeamBunnyGirl]

I'd say Ryan Murphy burns out after the second episode of anything, actually.

[u/ExperienceHead4989]

Pose (and some of Glee) are the only good things he’s ever done/helped do

[u/SpitefulCrow]

He has a wonderful artistic eye, but he also gets token-y with a lot of his queer themes. He also gives me this background energy that I get when I'm around people who are manipulative or predatory, so that's based on nothing but interesting feedback from my brain. 

[u/suburban-errorist]

Perfect for mindless Hollywood consumer slop, garbage if you enjoy thinking critically

[u/candykhan]

He's perfect for Hollywood. But pretty awful if you have taste. Pose was fun, but also very "surface-y."

Most of his other stuff I can't stand. It's cheese. He plays fast & loose with historical facts, but that's not really the point.

I guess I'd say I'm not really into most of his work 'cuz it's cheesy melodramatic feel-good Hollywood tripe. But he's good at it & Hollywood likes him. Can't begrudge him too much just for being a successful gay guy.

[u/tree_or_up]

Some of his stuff is brilliant. The first season of Feud, for example, was magnificent. And he works with astonishing and often loyal talent.

But his shows do have a signature vibe that can feel exploitative or, at best, cheesy. I feel like he's like a celebrity chef -- something brilliant there, but he's got 20 different chain restaurants that are just capitalizing on the brand. There's no way he could be deep into the production of all of them, much like Gordon Ramsey couldn't possibly be involved in the day to day operations of all of his spin off restaurants.

I've read articles in recent years that he's not the greatest human being, which doesn't surprise me -- he's been kind of an empire maker over the years. Unless something absolutely monstrous comes to light about him, I'm not quite ready to throw him under the bus as a creative force that's brought queer performers and perspectives to the mainstream

[u/Lcatg]

The fact that he kept shows going during the strikes tells me all I needed to know: he’s a scab. It’s virtually impossible for some rewriting to not happen. He claims he only working in non-writing capacities, but that’s improbable. Regardless, he could have used his high profile power for good & refused to cross the picket line at all. That’s what the teamsters do & it’s far more effective when everyone refuses to cross.

[u/Sapphicviolet91]

I am not a fan.

[u/WifeofBath1984]

I don't know him.