'That '90s Show' Viewers Torn Over Gay Representation in Netflix Spinoff

Viewers are being welcomed back to Point Place, Wisconsin, in That '90s Show, a reboot of the beloved Fox sitcom That '70s Show.

Netflix is behind the new comedy, and it follows Eric Forman (Topher Grace) and Donna Pinciotti's (Laura Prepon) teen daughter Leia (Callie Haverda) as she visits her grandparents, Red and Kitty (Kurtwood Smith and Debra Jo Rupp), for the summer.

Looking to reinvent herself, Leia starts to realize that through new friendships and adventures she may be able to do just that in Point Place, just like her parents did all those years before her.

But viewers appeared divided by LGBTQ representation in the show, including character Ozzie (Reyn Doi) who comes out as gay during the first season.

'That '90s Show' Viewers Torn Over Gay Representation in Netflix Spinoff

In That '90s Show, Ozzie is out and proud with his closest friends, namely Leia, her neighbor Gwen (Ashley Aufderheide), Gwen's brother Nate (Maxwell Acee Donovan), and his girlfriend Nikki (Sam Morelos).

There is also another sweet moment in the first season, where Ozzie tells Kitty about his sexuality and asks her if she was "okay" with the fact that he is gay, to which she responds that of course she is okay with it, and gives him a hug.

This storyline and the inclusion of a gay character has been hailed as groundbreaking, with Canadian LGBTQ publication In Magazine saying Ozzie "leads the charge for a welcome change in representation" in sitcoms.

Viewers also took to Twitter to discuss LGBTQ representation in the show, with some calling for Leia to come out as lesbian and enter into a relationship with Gwen, while others hailed Ozzie's character arc in the show.

Reflecting on the show as a whole, one viewer said they "love the inclusion of a gay character," while another hailed the scene in which Kitty reacted to Ozzie telling her that he is gay.

The viewer wrote: "THE SCENE WHEN OZZIE ASKED KITTY IF SHES OK WITH HIM BEING GAY & KITTY BEING SO ACCEPTING OF IT IS MAKING ME HAPPY CRY [sic]"

Although one viewer said that while it was not necessarily believable to have a teen be out and proud in the 90s, they said they enjoyed the storyline nonetheless.

They wrote: "Look I love representation but like #That90sShow... is it believable there would be a gay teenager who's out to his friends and they're just ok with it in WISCONSIN of all places in the 1990s?! Well I'll take a normal teenage life for a gay kid on TV over hate crime storylines"

Some viewers also debated the character of Leia, with one viewer saying it was "a sad reality" that she was unlikely to be gay because the show already featured Ozzie.

Another person who watched the show said that they felt Leia and Gwen "clearly should be" lesbians and lamented the fact that they don't think they will be.

One viewer wrote: "my roommate is making me watch that 90s show and they aren't lesbians??? i'm so annoyed. plus the one gay character on the show is one of the most annoying characters i've ever seen"

A minority of Twitter users criticized the show for even including one gay character, claiming Netflix had made That '90s Show "woke."

One person wrote: "#That90sShow Hate How @netflix gave into the woke agenda with the 'gay' kid character 🤮 talk about ruining a show.. smh they made the 90s 'Soft'.."

Some viewers may have forgotten that That '70s Show actually made history when it came to gay representation on American television, as it was the first to feature a kiss between two male characters on North American primetime TV.

In the show's debut season, Joseph Gordon-Levitt, in a cameo as Buddy Morgan in "Eric's Buddy," was a lab partner of Topher Grace's Eric.

After bonding all episode and starting to believe that Eric might also be gay, Buddy decided to kiss his classmate. Eric reacted in shock and spurned Buddy, and though they did agree to be friends, Buddy was not seen on the show again.

That '90s Show is available to watch on Netflix now.