It’s A Sin creator Russell T Davies reveals what ‘unbelievably crass’ scene he refused to write: ‘I’d rather die’
The idea was suggested by a broadcaster during the commissioning process of the hit show
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Your support makes all the difference.It’s a Sin creator Russell T Davies has revealed which “unbelievably crass” scene he refused to write.
The Channel 4 drama – which follows a group of young gay men during the Eighties Aids crisis – has proven to be smash hit for the network since its debut in January.
Speaking on The Hollywood Reporter’s podcast, Davies opened up about how he had previously pitched the drama to various broadcasters and received pushback on certain aspects.
The director found one suggestion in particular to be “unbelievably crass”.
“I was told at one channel, ‘What if it starts on an Aids ward in say, 1990 or 1992, with the machines and people dying – and then went: 10 years earlier…” he recalled.
Davies added: “I thought that was unbelievably crass and literally refused to do it.”
He continued to explain how his producer urged him to “type one page of that [idea]” in order to get the network on board.
TheTorchwood writer: “I’d rather die than type that page. It’s the wrong way to tell it. There was a lot of nonsense like that.”
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“Then you just wait for the right commissioner,” he continued. “In my experiences, all the bosses will leave their jobs every two or three years. So just sit still and the right person will enter the seat again.
“Heads of department changed and I got It’s A Sin commissioned five years later.”
Speaking about the possibility of a second series of his hit show, Davies said that he had already “said everything I wanted to say” in the first.
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