Eliot Glazer: The Broad City star talks bottom shaming, body image and the problem with gay “tribes”

Photos by Tyler Dean King

Eliot Glazer is one of those annoying combinations…talented, intelligent AND a nice person. WE HATE YOU ELIOT!

We love him really. In fact, without getting too ABC sitcom about it, Eliot is just the sort of role model gay men need at the moment. He’s ambitiously creative and unapologetically himself. In our insta-hued world of pretension, being yourself is very important. We left OUR selves in Stockwell Station about four months ago.

Eliot’s currently got a recurring role on Comedy Central’s critically-acclaimed series about apathy and amorality, Broad City! His sister Ilana has a starring role too. He’s also Executive Story editor on New Girl, feat. Zooey Deschanel. Here’s some info for you – the actors (for the most part) don’t make up the jokes. People write them! Imagine that!

Eliot’s very busy doing his important television stuff and trying on fab shirts, but Dylan Jones managed to grab him for a few minutes, for a chat about a few things, from bottom shaming to body image!

Hey Eliot! You are, among other things, a TV SHOW writer! What’s that like? Is it like 30 Rock?

Every writers’ room is different, which makes the job equally fun and terrifying! It’s all relative, but almost always fun!

We’ve heard you don’t like the concept of gay ‘tribes’ like bear, twink etc. Do you think they have a negative impact on the gay community?

Yes. I understand the need for community within the community, but I have always been completely baffled by the idea of a tribe. To be “classified” within an incredibly narrow nomenclature based on involuntary genetics has always struck me as so bizarre. I try to see both the good and the bad in tribes, but ultimately, I don’t get it. They’re just labels, and I – and this is just me – don’t like the idea of being assigned a label by other men based on how they see me rather than how I see myself.

Do you think gay men are happy at the moment?

I think it depends on where you live. If you’re in Los Angeles or New York, the environment is potentially very different from anywhere else in the country or the world. Being gay in China or Chechnya or Saudi Arabia seems like another world entirely.

Give us your views on BOTTOM SHAMING.

I understand why it’s a dialogue, but I’m also like…who cares? If you like butt stuff, do your thing! I’m a gay guy. I like butt stuff! I would never want to impose my thoughts about someone else’s sexual preferences on anyone else – straight, gay, or anything in between. It’s not my business.

What do you think about the subject of body image?

I think it’s way too complex to fit into one answer! I’d guess that anyone that isn’t a straight cis white guy would, to some degree, identify with it being a really clunky, subjective issue that is way too impacted by the culture.

We fucking love Broad City. Tell us about your experiences writing it/starring in it.

It’s super fun. Also weird to see elements of our real lives mirrored on TV. It’s still a trip to see this thing that was hatched between Ilana and Abbi in our tiny improv team become a cultural phenomenon.

Who would you say is your ideal man, or person, in terms of romance?

Anthony Ramos as Mars Blackmon in She’s Gotta Have It. I’m also kind of obsessed with SZA. I just can’t believe how sexy she is.

What’s the worst thing in the world?

Those fucking Make America Great Again hats.

What’s the best thing in the world?

The Howard Stern Show – but the woke, evolved Howard Stern, not the porn-star-circus-ringleader Howard Stern.

What’s the best thing you’ve ever eaten?

I had Monkey Bread for the first time at Christmas and I don’t know how I’ve lived for so long without it.

A PARTING SHOT – what advice would you give to young queerz who want to get into TV? 

Get hired as a writer’s assistant, but have an original pilot in your canon ready to go at all times. Be ready to put in the work, but know that the payoff is worth it.

Follow Eliot on Twitter @eliotglazer. Broad City is available to stream now on Amazon & iTunes.

Advertisement

LEAVE A REPLY

Please enter your comment!
Please enter your name here