Netflix's "Special" tells the story of a gay man with cerebral palsy, giving voice to an extremely underrepresented identity — and starring someone who understands it first-hand, as a gay man with cerebral palsy.
Ryan O'Connell, who wrote the memoir the show is based on, told GQ that it was "really hard" to sell the show to networks.
"It took four years so it took a lot of people saying no and it took a lot of people saying, 'F--- no.' It took one person saying, 'OK, sure, why not," he said, adding that even 2015 was "a very, very different time."
The show has also been celebrated for its realistic, relatable depictions of gay sex.
"It's time to show gay sex for what it is, and if people have a problem with that, then too bad, they need to unpack that with their therapist," O'Connell told GQ. "I don't make stuff to placate straight people."