2020 TV Shows with Diverse Creators & Cast

Over the past few years I’ve focused on consuming more media from a diverse set of creators to not only support artists from underrepresented communities, but also hear new stories from perspectives different than my straight white male self. Here’s a list of my favorite TV shows created by and featuring characters representing various races/ethnicities/genders/sexual orientations that have either premiered or released a new season in 2020.

• El Ganador (Netflix) — Biographical series about reggaeton superstar Nicky Jam. Directed by Jessy Terroro. Premiered in the U.S. in April 2020.

• Gentefied (Netflix) — Comedy/Drama about a family and their taco shop in L.A. Created by Marvin Bryan Lemus & Linda Yvette Chávez. Series premiered February 2020.

• Kim’s Convenience (CBC/Netflix) — Comedy/Drama about a family and their convenience store in Toronto. Created by Ins Choi & Kevin White. Season 4 premiered January 2020.

• Power (Starz) — Crime drama about a drug dealer trying to become legitimate. Created by Courtney A. Kemp. Series finale February 2020.

• P Valley (Starz) — Drama about a strip club in Mississippi. Created by Katori Hall. Series premiered July 2020.

• Queen Sono (Netflix) — Spy drama about a secret agent. Created by Kagiso Lediga. Netflix’s first African original series. Series premiered February 2020.

• Ramy (Hulu) — Comedy/Drama about a first generation Egyptian-American navigating through both cultures. Created by Ramy Youssef, Ari Katcher & Ryan Welch. Season 2 premiered May 2020.

• RuPaul Drag Race (VH1) — A reality TV drag competition. Presented by RuPaul. Season 12 premiered February 2020.

• We’re Here (HBO) — Drag queens organize drag shows in small towns across America to celebrate local LGBTQ+ communities. Created by Johnnie Ingram & Stephen Warren. Series premiered April 2020.

Notable Mentions: #BlackAF, Club de Cuervos, Deaf U, Fresh Off the Boat, Greenleaf, Indian Matchmaking, Insecure, Lovecraft Country, The Chi, The L Word: Generation Q, and Queer Eye.

CAUTION: The lists above are NOT exhaustive. If you have any favorites I’ve missed, please share! Indigenous creators & cast are noticeably missing from this list and the U.S. film industry, in general, which I’m writing a follow-up to this post on.

The world is a big place and many stories remain untold. Hopefully the TV industry can progress in providing more equitable representations of race/ethnicity, gender, sexual orientation, religion, and disability on camera AND behind it. While some progress was made in the film industry in 2019, there is still a long way to go in 2020 & beyond. Let’s support more artists from underrepresented communities so they can create and share their stories with the world!