Photo Credit: Outfest

Every week, the GLAAD Wrap brings you LGBTQ-related entertainment news highlights, fresh stuff to watch out for, and fun diversions to help you kick off the weekend!

1. Tickets for Outfest Fusion, the LGBTQ People of Color Film Festival, are now available for purchase. The lineup includes screenings of Desi Dreaming, Queer Truths, a sneak peek of the new STARZ series Now Apocalypse and more! Festival dates are March 1-5 and it takes place in Los Angeles. For full lineup and to purchase tickets, click here. Watch last year’s video below. 

2. The Athena Film Festival takes place in New York City February 28 through March 3. GLAAD is excited to be an organizational partner for the festival, which celebrates courageous women leaders. The lineup includes LGBTQ-inclusive films such as Can You Ever Forgive Me?, Dykes, Camera, Action, The Favourite, Rafiki, The Miseducation of Cameron Post, and more. Click here for the full lineup. Check out the trailer for the 2019 Athena Film Festival below.

3. The official Rocketman trailer was released on Thursday. Starring Taron Egerton as Elton John, the film revolves around out celebrated singer’s breakthrough years in the music industry, exploring his journey from shy piano prodigy to worldwide superstar. Rocketman will be in theaters May 31. Watch the trailer below.

4. LGBTQ-inclusive media made strides at the WGA awards on Sunday. Can You Ever Forgive Me?, the movie based on the life of lesbian author Lee Israel, won the Writers Guild of America’s Adapted Screenplay Award. The screenplay was co-written by out writer Jeff Whitty. FX and Ryan Murphy’s The Assassination of Gianni Versace: American Crime Story, won Adapted Long Form Award. Both WGA winners are nominated for GLAAD Media Awards. 

5. The My Days of Mercy trailer dropped on Wednesday, starring out actress Ellen Page and Kate Mara. The story follows two women who are on opposite sides of protests concerning the death penalty. The two fall in love despite their political differences and the polarizing world around them. The film is set to release on digital platforms in the coming months.

6. Danielle Macdonald and out actor Jaboukie Young-White are currently negotiating to star in an untitled new comedy from Paramount Players. Young-White, a comedian and Daily Show correspondent, will be playing a gay character as well. The film, written by Bo Burnham, will be directed by out lesbian director Amy York-Rubin.

7. Showtime ordered to series out writer/producer Lena Waithe’s new comedy anthology, entitled How to Make Love to a Black Woman (Who May Be Working Through Some (Sh*t). The show is a part of Waithe’s first-look deal with Showtime and will focus on telling stories about connection and rejection that play into characters’ secrets. Waithe is also an executive producer for Boomerang on BET. Watch the trailer below.

8. Out mega-producer, Ryan Murphy has announced plans for his next Netflix series, which will be titled Hollywood. Murphy described the series as a “love letter to the Golden Age of Tinseltown” to The Hollywood Reporter. In other TV news, out actor Alex Newell and Skylar Astin are set to co-star in the new NBC pilot Zoey’s Extraordinary Playlist, a dramedy musical series. The show focuses on the life of Zoey, played by Jane Levy, who can suddenly hear the thoughts of people around her as songs. In other TV news, The Ellen DeGeneres-produced Netflix series Green Eggs and Ham released its Season 1 teaser trailer on Tuesday; the series is set to premiere this fall on Netflix. Watch the teaser below.

9. RuPaul’s Drag Race Season 6 contestant, Courtney Act is the first drag act to compete on the Dancing With the Stars Australia. Act indicated that she will be performing in drag but would like to perform out of drag at least one time. Watch Act perform on Dancing With the Stars Australia below. The guest judges for Season 11 of RuPaul’s Drag Race were announced on Tuesday, and include out singer Troye Sivan, out writer-actress Lena Waithe, out comedian Wanda Sykes, out bisexual model Cara Delevingne, and more!

YAS what a show by @courtneyact #DWTSau pic.twitter.com/j4hNnyxxWg

— Dancing With The Stars Australia (@DancingOn10) February 18, 2019

10. Out R&B singer Kehlani released her new mixtape, While We Wait, today. The release also include pop-up shops in California, New York, Tokyo, London and Sydney. Stream the mixtape here. In other music news, Out lesbian musician Young M.A. released a new music video on Wednesday for a remix of her song “Thotiana.” Watch the music video below.

11. Out singer Adam Lambert has signed a new record deal for his upcoming fourth album. He announced this on Thursday in conjunction with releasing a new single, “Feel Something.” Lesbian musician Melissa Etheridge also released a new single off of her upcoming album, “Faded by Design.” Watch the two queer singers perform together at the 2018 GLAAD Media Awards below!

12. Pur-suit is a 54 card deck that features queer women, transgender people, non-binary people, and gender nonconforming people. The cards will be created to expand and preserve the narrative of queerness and evolving identities in our world today. Click here to learn more about the project.