Readers' Choice: The Top 25 Gay TV Characters Revealed!

Waylon Smithers has the notable distinction of being the only animated character to make our list. We were somewhat surprised by this as there were quite a number of other gay animated characters on our survey. So why did Smithers rise to the top? Maybe he scored points for his absurd, toady-like devotion to the evil Mr. Burns. Or maybe Smithers has risen to the top simply because of his longevity.

Waylon Smithers was first introduced in the third episode of The Simpsons, way back in 1990. This actually makes him the longest running gay character (animated or otherwise) to make the Top 25. What have followed are nearly two decades of his fawning over the derepit Mr. Burns, yet somehow he has managed to win our hearts nonetheless!

Played by hunky out gay actor Robert Gant, Professor Ben Bruckner came into Michael Novotny’s life in the second season of Queer as Folk and gently got him to let go of his unrequited crush on Brian. He was steady, reliable, understanding, and intelligent, and he looked great with his shirt off, too.

Ben was also HIV-positive, and QAF didn’t shy away from looking at the sexual and emotional complications of a relationship between two men of different HIV status. Although Ben, a Buddhist, was usually so serene he was just the tiniest bit boring, the death of his ex-lover from AIDS and the anti-gay attack that almost killed Michael both sent him over the edge, giving his serene exterior just enough emotional depth to save his character from being so perfect he was dull.

Although he ranks a bit lower than his other half, Luke Snyder (Van Hansis) As the World Turns' newest gay character has certainly found his way into the hearts of gay and straight audiences alike. In fact, the chemistry generated by Noah Mayer (Jake Silbermann) and Luke has made the duo the most popular couple on the show and they were recently named as one of seven hottest pairings on all of daytime television.

Noah's coming out story on ATWT wasn't an easy one, complicated by the fact that he was deeply closeted and severely compromised by the presence of his homophobic (not to mention murderous) father whom he desperately wanted to please.

But thanks to the support of his friends and his new beau, Noah pulled through the tough times. No one can say for sure what the future holds for the young couple — this is a soap opera after all — but Noah's strength in coming to terms with his sexuality and overcoming his father's hateful influence has made his story one to watch.