Tommy Martinez Talks Good Trouble And Bisexual Representation On TV

By Kelsey Minor


Good Trouble follows the lives of adoptive sisters Callie and Mariana and their journey into adulthood in Los Angeles. On the show, a spinoff of Freeform's beloved drama The Fosters, Callie and Mariana are initially caught off guard if they move into an accommodating living space with a crowd of young, hot strangers. One of these people is Gael (played by Tommy Martinez). It doesn't take long for Mariana to have a large crush him — although Callie and Gael soon develop an intimate relationship of their own, even if it goes against "girl code." It sounds like a regular TV romance, right? With the exception of the fact that Gael is proudly bisexual, and he doesn’t hide it. Case in point, while casually dating Callie, it's revealed that Gael also has a boyfriend.


Martinez stars as Gael, an artist, on Freeform's Good Trouble


I met up with Martinez at one of his preference places, The Verve Coffee Roaster, in Los Angeles, down the street from where he used to wait tables at Zinqué. Whenever I arrived, I spotted his hair first. Then, his girlfriend, actress Adeline Rudolph who stars in Netflix’s The Chilling Adventures of Sabrina. In real life Martinez, 26, isn't bisexual, although he tells me that he identifies with Gael in a few ways, even candidly talking about his own same-sex experience 10 years ago.


The revelation came to light whenever he was taking part in a panel discussion with some of the show's creators and stars at the Los Angeles LGBT Center in January. Tommy says he felt compelled to share the anecdote because he had recently opened up to a close family about it. And for the better piece of a hour, he shared with me what it’s been like to bring this character to life.


MTV News: Who is Gael to you?


Tommy Martinez: When I first read it — the character description — I mentioned, "This is me." Not exactly relating his bisexuality to my same-sex experience however everything else just felt like me. For instance, in the way that he would speak and while in that month-long experience of auditioning I really just sank myself into his shoes, into his life, and really related to him. I feel as though I’m so parallel to Gael.


MTV News: Was that what attracted you to the role?


Martinez: With any of the other roles, it's not something that attracted me. It's just something that came to me from the agent's office. They just send it out to you, and then I read the character description and, with Good Trouble, with Gael Martinez, he's an artist attempting to balance his artsy capabilities with a real job that'll keep him afloat. I sort of had that same experience out here [in Los Angeles]. I did pretty well in modeling for a time, however that was just to pay rent. As soon as that slowed down, I didn't desire to burn a hole in my pocket, and I still wanted to take acting classes, which can be very expensive. Actually, right down the street, Zinqué, that restaurant there? I worked there as a waiter. That's where everything started.


I would work there to help pay rent as well as pay for my acting classes. I remember, even with Shameless and Riverdale, that's where I got my call. I was working the floor, and then I'd feel my phone begin vibrating, and I'd visualize that it's my agent. So I'd run over to the washroom and answer it. She's like, "You're booked for Riverdale." I was like, "Fuck!" It's just insane.


The cast of Good Trouble


MTV News: You were talking on a panel recently, and you also revealed that you had a same-sex experience years prior. Why did you feel comfortable in that moment to share that?


Martinez: Two weeks before, I was on vacation, and one of my family member members was scrutinized for something that had happened a number of years back, which happened to be him and another boy. He was sort of being made fun of for it, and he had a melt down while we were on this vacation. I had never seen him like that before, and yes it fucking broke my heart.


think in case you just had an experience with a male, then you're either gay or you're bisexual. Same thing with some of the articles that came out right after that panel. It looked like, "A bisexual [actor] representing a bisexual," and that wasn't the case at all … Right before we went up on the panel, I turned over to Bradley [Bredeweg], one of the EPs and one of the creators of the show, and I was just like, "I had this experience a few years back, and I was wondering if I may just tell that story today." I just felt compelled to mention it because that family was still in my mind, and I felt like I needed to, and I wanted to.


MTV News: You've mentioned that growing up with a big Venezuelan family member that sexuality was something that's not really spoke about.


Martinez: I think that playing a character like this, and knowing that people from my hometown are seeing it, because everybody understands everybody there, and having that sort of exposure would just make it that much easier. It's like breaking down that wall that like, "Oh, you can't talk about it." Here, I'm fucking throwing it out at you. Let's talk about it. And we have. Any time If I went back house for the holidays, they'll ask me, "How does it feel to play a bisexual character?" I was like, "It's fine. It's fun. There's nothing bad about it." It's just two human beings who are attracted, or are intimate with one another. What's the problem with that? There's not a fucking problem with that. Sorry for my language.


MTV News: Have you thought about the weight of the character you play and what it means for the LGBTQ community?


Martinez: I learned as I statistics more about this character that even inside the LGBTQ community bisexuality isn’t really accepted, and that’s upsetting to me because it’s like you are working against the very same things that you are fighting for. There’s still so much work to be done and to tell these kinds of stories.


Trans actor and activist Hailie Sahar plays Gael's sister, Jazmin


MTV News: What has been your family's reaction to you playing this character?


Martinez: My parents, my sisters, and brother — they love the show. Granted, it was something new to be able to see me on screen hook up with a guy, however I told them this is the character and that’s that. Some of my other family member members questioned if I was really into the guy that I make out with on screen. I used it a teachable moment, where I wanted it to be known that if I did [enjoy it] that it shouldn’t be a problem. I feel really good about this character because it's helping my family member to understand that people live different lives.


MTV News: Who is more likely to get into trouble, Gael or Tommy?


Martinez: Maybe me. I feel like Gael is good guy. He is a really good dude. I get myself in trouble, as in, some of the silly shit that I do, like rock climbing. Putting myself in trouble… It's a lot of dangerous stuff. Riding on a motorcycle in this crazy city.


MTV News: Was there a time either while in shooting or once the episodes began to air that you realized this character would impact people?


Martinez: It took a number of episodes to really feel how everything was happening, and then it was a whole second wave that hit me once the show began airing — seeing the responses on Instagram, like, "Dude, thank you so much. I have been going via same sort of situation, and this sort of gives me more confidence to break out my shell and talk about it as a gay or bisexual man, or woman." Just the answer of the fans was — even just saying fans makes you feel crazy — it was all so positive.


MTV News: What do you hope people take away from Gael?


Martinez: The confidence to push through life… to have that confidence in being who they are, totally and truly, and not having to have any straps keeping you back from being just that. If someone is in that same position as Gael, the story's not over. We're filming the second season right now, and there really are some really powerful things that involve [his] family.


So, yeah, I just hope it permits people to accept themselves for who they are, without consideration of if their companions or family member accept them. What, are you gonna keep prolonging that? Up until how long?


Good Trouble airs Tuesday nights on Freeform.