‘Coming Out for Love’ Is the Lesbian Reality Dating Series We’ve Been Waiting For

Award-winning queer filmmaker Nicole Conn has officially premiered the first U.S. lesbian dating competition show across various digital streaming platforms, with new episodes airing weekly.

Filmed entirely on location at the Palm Palace in Palm Springs, California, Coming Out for Love is a groundbreaking reality series showcasing 16 women living together under one roof and participating in emotional and physical challenges to win weekly keys that unlock the heart of the Key Master—activist, content creator, and influencer Amber Whittingham.

Coming Out for Love prides itself on authentic representation of the queer community and does not shy away from, or edit out, hot-button topics or highly volatile scenes, including sensitive racial conversations, racy sexual encounters, and not so “PC” moments. The format, competitions, and relationship interactions will appeal to all audiences, queer or straight.

Conn tapped model, actress, and activist Jessica Clark to host, and she took some time to talk more about the show and its significance with OFM.

Let me begin by asking, how excited are you to host Coming Out for Love?

I am very excited! I genuinely see Coming Out for Love as being part of the next evolution of queer representation on television. Of course, it’s a dating reality show, but we consciously tried to represent as diverse a cast as I see in my own community, the type of people we see day-to-day that aren’t necessarily reflected on shows that have come before us, and everything paves the way. Everything plays its part.

Coming Out for Love has diversity in ethnicities, body types, gender expression, and relationships ideals, such as monogamy, polyamory, etc., and there’s plenty of fun and romance. This amazing cast, we told them in the beginning, you are not censored in any way. You are not expected to say or do anything. Be exactly who you are, and they were. The conversations that came out of it were honestly quite astounding. There were a few times where I was like, “I can’t even believe this is happening.”

Everything happened so organically, and this is my first time hosting a show at this level. I am just so proud of everybody. Not because everyone behaved perfectly, but because there was such openness.

How did you initially get involved with this project, and what did you personally take away from this experience?

I got involved because Nicole Conn, the director and creator of Coming Out for Love, she is a feature film director and a documentary maker, and my very first feature film in Los Angeles was with Nicole, A Perfect Ending, which is now on Netflix, and it was such a wonderful experience for me. A vast majority of the crew was LGBTQ; the film itself is an emotional journey, and it was a very safe space, but it was also hilarious. We cracked each other up constantly.

So, when she approached me with Coming Out for Love, I immediately warmed to the idea because it’s Nicole, and I warmed to the idea because I love my community. So, anything I can participate in that increases visibility, awareness, genuine conversations, and not conforming to stereotypes, etc., I’m in. It was such a cool experience.

Coming Out for Love is the first U.S. lesbian dating competition show. How significant is that?

I think Coming Out for Love is so significant because at its heart, it’s a classic dating show where the cast is coming together and genuinely looking for love and romantic connection. We have this gorgeous, amazing lead, Amber Whittington, who is just fabulous, and we get to enjoy fun, fluffy, LGBTQ content. Yes, we do touch on some serious topics, but it’s not all about hardcore drama and the difficulties that we go through. I love being a queer woman; I love my community, and I wouldn’t want to be part of any other community. I love my wife, friends, all of it. So, to see some of that joy and fun out there, that’s very exciting to me, and I think that’s what makes this show significant.

Just the fact that none of these women were censored and nothing was scripted, I find that unique in itself. What other ways is this show different from other dating reality competitions?

Yes, nobody was censored at all. There is some conflict, and there are some very explosive moments that the producing side had not anticipated, but at first, I was like, “Are we even going to have a show?” These women are all loving each other and enjoying each other’s company. Think about it. You’re in this gorgeous mansion, Palm Palace in Palm Springs; there’s a pool, gorgeous lighting everywhere, and then you have all these other gorgeous women who simply love women. So, I was like, I don’t know. This might just be one big love fest, which would have been its own thing (laughs).

Then you have the complexities of different relationships, and everyone is coming in with a different lived experience. It’s not just the LA lesbian, which I’m one of them, but it’s different being out and living in a small town in the South, dealing with people’s responses to you. It’s very different than someone walking around Los Angeles. So, we really wanted to showcase that kind of diversity as well.

And these contestants are trying to win Amber Whittington’s heart?

Yes! She’s such a phenomenal inaugural lead. We couldn’t have asked for more. She’s gorgeous; she’s an activist; she’s been a content creator for years; she’s an actor, and she has all these different facets to her personality. I don’t want to speak for her, but from what I have seen through the years, her personal goal is really to sort of elevate the conversation and be a part of change and growth.

I read that Season 1 will feature women who identify as women loving women, while future seasons will embrace other identities in our LGBTQ community. Why not do that from the beginning?

That’s a good question, and I think that would be an enormous scope of a show for its first season. I have a producer credit on this show, it’s my first producing credit, and it was a huge undertaking. I think we really wanted to keep it specific and get it right. I don’t mean, like, get it perfect, but we wanted to be able to delve into stories. Also, I personally did a lot of outreach for casting because I want, or want in the future as well, there to be trans people, nonbinary people, asexual people, everyone under the umbrella, but there’s also a trust that has to be built.

Without having a previous season, some people would feel they would be at risk because the reality of reality TV is that things can be manipulated, chopped, and changed. You can be misrepresented or represented in an incredibly narrow minded, salacious way. We’ve seen that in other shows, so we want to respect that one thousand percent. I believe that this first season of Coming Out for Love will show the community that we truly want all of the community to be a part of this experience. Also, there’s so many kinds of love. Ride or die friendships, chosen family. Some cast members became very tight.

Ultimately, what do you hope audiences take away from Coming Out for Love?

I hope that audiences take away a greater appreciation for the diversity of our community. That no one really falls into any particular stereotype, and I would love for audiences to continue the conversation. We’re not pretending to be perfect. We’re not pretending to have it right. We’re just saying, look how wonderful, amazing, and different we all are.

Also, after you watch Coming Out for Love, tell us what we did right. Tell us what we did wrong. Tell us what we can do better next season, and tell us what you would like to see next season. What group or combination of people excites you? What do you think would be interesting? Who do you want to see go on that romantic journey? I genuinely want to know that.

Before we wrap up, do you personally have any other upcoming projects or anything else you would like to mention or plug?

Currently, it’s a different kind of project, but my wife and I own our own tattoo and piercing studio called High Art Tattoo. We have locations in Los Angeles and Midtown, and we’re opening up another one in St. Petersburg, Florida. So, we’ve been working on the construction and all that. Then, on the entertainment side, I have been working on a new medium in the gamer world. I’m not allowed to say much, but it’s releasing in 2023, and we’ve been working on this for three years. So, I’m very excited to go deeper into that community!

Stay up-to-date and connect with Clark by following her on Instagram @thejessicaroseclark. For more information and to watch episodes of Coming Out for Love, visit comingoutforlove.com.