"Passions" сериалының кейіпкері: Симон Рассел

Fictional character on Passions

Simone Russell is a fictional character on the American soap opera Passions, which aired on NBC from 1999 to 2007 and on DirecTV in 2007–08. A member of Passions Russell family, Simone is introduced as the youngest daughter of Eve Russell and T. C. Russell, and the younger sister of Whitney Russell. Her early appearances center on her love triangle with Chad Harris Crane and her sister Whitney; the character later gains more prominence on the show through her experience coming out as a lesbian to her family, and her relationship with Rae Thomas. The network defended the show's treatment of Simone's sexuality as a serious commentary on the topic. Simone was created as a part of the show's effort to represent a complete African American family and fully realized African American characters on television. Conceived by the soap's founder and head writer James E. Reilly, the role was portrayed by three actresses over the course of the show: Lena Cardwell (1999–2001), Chrystee Pharris (2001–2004), and Cathy Jenéen Doe (2004–2007). The exact reasons behind Cardwell's departure remain unknown; Pharris chose to leave to pursue other acting opportunities. Doe was the third and final actress to play Simone before the character was written off the show shortly before its transition to DirecTV. Simone's storyline made daytime television history when Passions became the first soap opera to show two women having sex. The character was also daytime television's first African American lesbian. At the 17th GLAAD Media Awards, the show won Outstanding Daily Drama, and Doe accepted the award on the show's behalf. The show's representation of lesbian, gay, bisexual, and transgender (LGBT) topics, and Doe's performance as Simone, received a mixed response from critics; she was the principal actress during the storylines focusing on the character's sexuality.

Sheraton Kalouria, senior vice president of NBC's daytime programming, described the show's color blind casting as part of an effort to build a diverse pool of characters that best reflected the various ethnic and racial groups living in the United States. Kalouria believed the show stood apart from other soap operas by including the African American Russell family and the Hispanic Lopez Fitzgerald family. Over the course of the show, Simone was played by three actresses: Lena Cardwell (July 5, 1999 to April 16, 2001), Chrystee Pharris (April 17, 2001 to April 2004), and Cathy Jenéen Doe (July 23, 2004 to September 4, 2007). After watching Cardwell's audition for the role, producers Reilly and Lisa de Cazotte considered Cardwell the ideal choice for Simone. NBC fired Cardwell in the winter of 2001, in a move described as "abrupt" in an article from Soapcentral. Cast members expressed disappointment at Cardwell's departure and the character's re casting. Tracey Ross, who portrays Eve Russell, described Cardwell as being "very sincere, completely authentic and without malice" in her performance. Rodney Van Johnson, who plays T. C. Russell, viewed himself as "a father figure to her" and felt that their close relationship helped make the Russell family more authentic and relatable to viewers. After leaving the show, Cardwell said she received a great deal of fan mail and that the experience "made [her] feel loved and appreciated." Pharris assumed the role in 2001, During an interview with The Christian Post, she said that her time on Passions helped her to realize that her occupation as an actress could be used as a platform to advocate for Christianity. Doe was hired for the third and final re casting after moving to Los Angeles from New York, where she was primarily offered the role of "a runaway teenager, a prostitute, a drug dealer". Initially hesitant to assume a character already established by other actors, she became friendly with Pharris, who answered all of her questions about the character.

Simone was initially characterized by the show's official website through her "major crush on street kid Chad Harris since he came to town". Daniel R. Coleridge of TV Guide described Simone's early behavior as "bitchy to her older sister, who was nothing but kind to her", while Variety's Josef referred to the character as a "daredevil teen." When assuming the role in 2001, Pharris said that her preparation consisted of consulting with her friends about Simone, Whitney, and Chad, and incorporating her own life experiences into her interpretation of the character. She commented that working closely with the producers allowed her to draw on her family background for her performance. While discussing the connection to her family, she stated that she used her father's temper as inspiration for playing Simone. Simone was initially portrayed as one of the series' supporting characters, but gained more prominence during a storyline in which she comes out as a lesbian. Kalouria defended the show's treatment of the character's sexuality as a serious commentary on the topic. During an interview about the storyline, he highlighted "sexual identity isn't a passing fancy" and "this is where [Simone] is I can assure you we're not going to make light of this particular topic." During the story arc involving her girlfriend Rae Thomas, Simone was noted for her naivety when approaching relationships and sex. Simone's sexuality is initially regarded as "a badge of shame" by the series' characters. The Atlantics Aaron Foley saw the show's inclusion of a black, lesbian character as a sign of "America bec[oming] more comfortable with seeing blacks on screen" and viewers "bec[oming] more comfortable with risky, sometimes hilarious storylines". Damon Romine, media entertainment director of GLAAD (2005–2009), emphasized the show's ability to normalize lesbian, gay, bisexual, and transgender (LGBT) topics for a wider audience, and opined that the introduction of gay characters made soap operas worth watching. Sarah Warn, former editor of entertainment website AfterEllen. com, considered the storyline an improvement over a similar one used in All My Children. Several television critics had a more negative response to Simone's storyline as a lesbian and to Doe's performance. Warn criticized Simone's relationship with Rae as poorly developed, believing her to be limited to "a one dimensional character who happened to sleep with a girl", and argued that viewers never had the opportunity to "see this woman through her eyes" since the character's sexuality and past relationships with men, and her possible bisexuality, were never addressed on screen. Warn also derided the lack of chemistry between Doe and Jossara Jinaro, who plays Rae. Rae's death following the reveal of Chad's affair with Vincent was heavily criticized by Mike Perigard of the Boston Herald, who believed that her removal was only written to maintain a low quota of gay characters on the show. Simone was the first African American lesbian to be featured on daytime television. Passions also made history by becoming the first daytime television series to show two women having sex. The soap opera won the award for Outstanding Daily Drama at the 17th GLAAD Media Awards, with Doe accepting the award on the show's behalf. Doe was also listed as a pre nominee for the Daytime Emmy Award for Outstanding Supporting Actress in a Drama Series for the 34th Daytime Emmy Awards alongside co star Emily Harper, but was not chosen as one of the final nominees.