A little bird who nests at Logo (AfterElton's parent company) just gave us word that the gay network has officially greenlit a movie based on the fan-favorite gay show Noah's Arc, which told the story of a group of gay African-American friends navigating life and love in the city. Despite being a groundbreaking show for visibility of gay men (and further, gay men of color), the show was canceled after two seasons, leaving its fans unsure of what happened with the boys. Looks like we're going to find out!

The film's working title is Noah's Arc: Jumping the Broom (I guess a shark was too dangerous?) and we're told it is a wedding-themed film (they won't tell us whose wedding...) that will pick up where the series left off at the cliffhanger season finale. Production begins in March and newly-out lead Darryl Stephens (Noah), Doug Spearman (Chance), Rodney Chester (Alex) and Christian Vincent (Ricky) are set to return, with other casting to be announced soon.

Series creator Patrik-Ian Polk had this to say about the announcement:

"I'm thrilled to have this opportunity to take this cult hit TV show to the big screen. With the exception of the many 70's hit shows to get the film treatment, very few television series get to make the move to movie theatres. It's a bold experiment, but I've come to expect nothing less from the MTV Networks/Logo brand. And I look forward to continuing the funny and dramatic sagas of Noah and his friends as we pick up where we left off in the dramatic second season cliffhanger. It's been a little wait for the fans, but I promise they won't be disappointed. 'Jumping The Broom' definitely takes this story to the next level in a big way.”

Logo President Brian Graden had this to say:

"We're proud that our first flagship series will now be Logo's first original movie. Logo and the show’s fans have been with Noah and his friends from the beginning and we're excited to see that Patrik-Ian Polk will be continuing their stories on the big screen."

But that's not all: Polk and Stephens also wanted to deliver the news in person via a special video message just for AfterElton.com readers. Check it out below!

In a rather curious "soft outing", Noah's Arc star Darryl Stephens has come out in Out Magazine via his inclusion in the Out 100. (That's a lot of "out" for someone who doesn't discuss his sexuality!) Says the blurb on their blog:

"In a year of revolving closet doors for TV actors, we can also offer one long-anticipated quiet confirmation: Noah's Arc star Darryl Stephens, who has declined to discuss his sexuality while playing a series of nuanced gay roles. He doesn't exactly talk about it, but he proudly joins the other queer honorees in our pages."

I've confirmed with the folks at Out that being gay is and has always been a criterion for the list, so it's safe to say that his appearance here is his coming out party. It's nice to see Hot 100 vet Stephens embracing his out status in the same way that his gay fans have embraced him, and I'm personally looking forward to being able to cover him and his projects without having to talk around the issue. The guy's gorgeous, charismatic, and a lot of fun to watch, and I think that's what we'd all rather focus on.

The globally-minded scamps over at Queerty found an interesting interview at gay South African site Mamba with Noah's Arc lead Darryl Stephens. In the interview, Stephens claims that he's through playing gays for a while (he says it's a "moratorium", which sounds a bit severe; isn't that kind of like when Disney stuffs its ticket-sellers back into the vault?), and then goes on to explain why he and his cast do not discuss their sexualities publicly:

"The one thing I can say is that the straight actors on this show [Noah’s Arc] are not saying "we’re straight, playing gay". In the same way that the gay actors aren’t saying "we’re gay". No-one [on the show] is talking about their personal lives. We sat down – all the actors sat down – and said that the straight actors are not going to get all the press because they’re being “so brave” in playing gay."

Um ... okay ...

Stephens' interview reads to me like a guide to running career damage control while still making a living off of gay fans and audiences. I'll be the first to admit that I had assumed this actor was gay, but that's because I'd only seen him play gay roles in gay projects -- I could really care less either way. I'm not sure I agree with his argument that coming out about who you have relationships with in your personal life will lead to more grievous typecasting than the fact that you've played gay characters almost exclusively.

Stephens later notes that he's of course up for a movie version of Arc, adding, "Noah is a great character for me. A lot of people relate to him – he’s a gift. I won’t give up playing this character."

Thoughts?