Gay American Actor Makes Waves in Russia's Closeted Entertainment Scene

[pampango]

Odin Biron plays U.S. doctor Phil Richards in Russian sitcom “Interny.”

The coming out of American actor Odin Lund Biron, who plays a starring role in one of Russia's most popular sitcoms, has rattled the Russian show business community, where homosexuality remains taboo. The 30-year-old Minnesotan — better known to Russian television viewers as Phil Richards, the keen American medical intern on hit sitcom "Interny" — revealed earlier this week in an interview with New York Magazine that he is gay.

Biron stars alongside Ivan Okhlobystin, arguably one of Russia's most outspoken entertainment personalities, who is well-known for his homophobic diatribes. Okhlobystin, who plays Biron's merciless supervisor on the show, tweeted that he "banged his head against the wall and cursed fate" when he heard that his co-star was a "sodomite."

Coming out of the closet is a high-risk endeavor in the world of Russian show business. Television host Anton Krasovsky was promptly fired from his job at Kontr TV in 2013 after announcing he was gay on air.

In 2013, Russia adopted legislation banning the "propaganda of nontraditional sexual relations among minors." Critics of the law say it has further stigmatized Russia's LGBT community by restricting its members' freedoms and rights, and has led to a surge in hate crime.

http://www.themoscowtimes.com/news/article/gay-american-actor-makes-waves-in-russia-s-closeted-entertainment-scene/515785.html

Biron's future in Russian television may be in jeopardy. Will be interesting to see what happens to him and the show he is in.