Slickly produced web series should be approached with caution: a little too professional looking to be a cult curiosity, but if it were actually any good, why not on TV already?

This new one, called In Between Men, so desperately wants to be a gay Sex And The City that in this first episode we get navel-gazing narration, fashion label name-dropping, four ‘diverse’ friends doing terribly glamorous jobs and Manhattan event locations.

The problem with this kind of thing, as SATC2 proved, is that just putting glamorous people in swanky settings does not great entertainment make, just like watching people clubbing can never evoke the feeling of being there. And I’m not buying the gorgeous, gym-toned event planner guy’s anti-scene talk.

Still, on the plus side, good to see regular guys being gay and not a limp wrist between them, just a funny homo take on the usual bro fist-bump.

You can watch Episode 2 here.

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Glee star Chris Colfer (who plays Kurt) has gained a head start on his classmates in the race to a movie career.

He’s just been lead cast in the coming-of-age comedy, Struck By Lightning. Of course it might have helped that he also wrote the script, which has been picked up by top Hollywood producer, David Permut.

No word yet on the story of whether the ‘out’ actor will be playing gay or straight, but Permut, who is looking to attach a director and co-stars soon, describes it as “in the spirit of movies penned by the late John Hughes”.

Emmy award winning Colfer is smart to be looking beyond Glee, particularly as creator Ryan Murphy has hinted at a cast purge, and good to see that the future is very much brighter these days for young, gay actors.

Struck By Lightning will be shot during Glee’s summer hiatus next year.

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The casting of 24-year-old Armie Hammer (The Social Network) as Leonardo DiCaprio’s secret gay lover in Clint’s J Edgar movie makes them (as FBI No. 2 Clyde Tolson and Hoover, respectively) the hottest homo screen couple of 2011.
Funny how real-life gays are always hotted up for the screen.

In case you’ve ever wondered what kind of diva you are, Peccadillo Pictures have created a Facebook app for their latest movie Loose Cannons (released 17 December in the UK). Apparently I’m a diva on the outside, but a kitten on the inside just waiting to be discovered.

Of course the Wachowski’s next movie won’t be a ‘future archeological Gulf War gay love story’ or whatever, it’ll be an ‘urban’ Robin Hood starring Will Smith. Anyone else and that would be as bad as it sounds, but you just have to wait and see with the Matrix due.

James Franco has already played one tragic, closeted star of Rebel Without A Cause (James Dean) and in optioning the film rights to a new Sal Mineo biography, he might just be interested in playing another.

And finally, have you seen this just released trailer for Jodie Foster’s new directing effort? The gay star seems to think a Beaver can revive Mel’s career. I’d say it might be better for him to stay away from beavers altogether.

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The UK’s only openly gay sportsman, Gareth Thomas, has been reflecting to Rugby World magazine about his life since publicly coming out a year ago.

The former Wales rugby union captain says that he misses the anonymity of being just another player, but is humbled by the response from people who have been helped and inspired by his actions. He also acknowledges that, as a gay player, he’s “walking a path that’s never been trodden before”.

He also had a few things to say about Hollywood star Mickey Rourke’s interest in his story for a movie biopic. “Mickey loves rugby and admires rugby people; the fact you then drink beer in the bar with the guy you’ve just tried to smash,” he said.

“He’s always wanted to make a movie based on rugby but he needed a person or character to revolve it around. He read my story and got in touch.

“Some people have said he’s too old to play me at 58 but I think he’s the best man to play me.”

Gareth also wants a hand in the writing, although he’s not looking forward to revisiting recent history. “The truth is I don’t want to go back. I’ve moved so far forward and it’s something so dark I don’t want to go back there,” he said.

“It’s hard to even think about it now because it’s like I’ve put a brick wall up and unless I push really hard it won’t fall down.

“I want to write it myself as I don’t want to miss a part of it.”

Thomas revealed the untitled movie is being lined up for a late-2011 start.

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It’s been a very gay friendly weekend in Hollywood, starting off with excellent first weekend box office numbers for I Love You Phillip Morris and Black Swan.

On a mere 6 screens the Jim Carrey/Ewan McGregor con-rom-com made a hefty $113,000. Even that pales next to the incredible start for Natalie Portman’s new movie, however, which came in at no. 13 on a very limited release and achieved Fox Searchlight’s best ever per screen average.

It’s likely that I Love You Phillip Morris suffered from competition with the gay themed ballet thriller. “[It] took away a nice chunk of our hipster, gay and specialty audience,” said an exec from distributor Roadside Attraction. Still a great start, though.

The other big story was actress Amber Heard’s decision to come out and introduce her girlfriend Tasya van Ree to the world at Saturday’s 25th anniversary event for GLAAD in Los Angeles.

The Pineapple Express star (soon to be seen with Johnny Depp in The Rum Diary) credited the gay organisation with helping her decision to go public. Speaking to AfterEllen.con she said: “I think GLAAD is one of the many reasons that I, as a 24-year-old, can come out.

“I think that organizations like GLAAD make that possible because if it weren’t for opinions being changed, people being influenced, people being engaged to do the right thing, then there would be no prerogative for anyone to come out. Like I said, I can’t be a part of the problem. I hate the idea of a label just as much as anyone else but I’m with who I’m with, I love who I love.”

Smart, sexy and talented; Amber and Tasya are surely Hollywood’s new golden couple.

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