It’s
long
been
a
joke
that
if
all
gay
people
went
on
strike,
no
one
would
be
able
to
get
their
hair
done,
Broadway
shows
would
close
down
and
there
wouldn’t
be
any
daytime
talk
show
hosts
(thanks
Rosie
and
Ellen!).
The
new
A&E
made-for-television
comedy
“Wedding
Wars,”
which
premieres
Monday,
Dec.
11,
at
9
p.m.,
runs
with
that
joke
and
explores
a
world
where
a
gay
wedding
planner
(John
Stamos)
starts
a
nationwide
protest
when
he
refuses
to
plan
a
wedding
until
gays
have
equal
marriage
rights.
“Two
people
from
A&E
pitched
the
idea
and
if
we
liked
it
we
could
produce
it,”
says
Craig
Zadan,
who
executive
produced
the
movie
along
with
his
life
and
business
partner
Neil
Meron.
“Instantly
we
said
yes.
We’ve
made
every
kind
of
movie
but
the
one
movie
we
hadn’t
made
was
a
movie
in
the
tone
of
[1993’s]
‘Dave,’
[starring
Kevin
Kline
and
Sigourney
Weaver].
“It
was
a
romantic
comedy
and
charming
and
adorable
and
touching
and
said
more
about
politics
and
the
American
presidency
than
most
political
movies,
because
it
did
it
in
an
adorable
way.
When
the
movie
was
over,
you
felt
like
there
was
a
message
there,
but
you
didn’t
feel
like
someone
was
on
their
soapbox
lecturing
at
you.”
MERON
AND
ZADAN
use
a
similar
subversive
storytelling
mode
in
“Wedding
Wars,”
simultaneously
educating
and
entertaining
their
audiences.
The
story
is
the
classic
stuff
of
romantic
comedies.
When
Ben
(“Grey’s
Anatomy’s”
Eric
Dane),
a
staffer
for
the
governor
of
Maine
proposes
to
his
boss’
daughter,
Maggie
(Bonnie
Somerville),
she
suggests
that
Ben’s
gay
brother
Shel
(John
Stamos)
plan
the
wedding.
The
brothers
haven’t
had
the
best
relationship
since
Shel
came
out
of
the
closet,
and
Maggie
thinks
this
will
bring
them
closer
together.
She’s
right,
and
things
go
swimmingly,
until
the
governor
(James
Brolin)
comes
out
against
same-sex
marriage
rights,
a
stance
that
Ben
supports.
Shel
decides
to
quit
the
wedding
in
protest.
“At
first
it’s
a
knee-jerk
reaction
to
go
on
strike,”
says
Stamos,
who
says
that
he
had
great
chemistry
with
costar
Sean
Maher,
who
plays
Shel’s
live-in
boyfriend
(and,
yes,
they
kiss).
“Through
the
thing
he
learns
about
what
gay
marriage
is
missing.”
As
Shel
discovers
more
about
his
cause,
more
people
join
his
strike
(in
front
of
the
governor’s
mansion,
natch).
The
stereotypical
joke
would
be
a
bunch
of
hairdressers
and
flower
shop
owners
on
the
line,
but
there’s
a
hysterical
scene
where
an
entire
television
news
broadcast
is
shut
down
when
all
the
gay
workers
walk
out.
Of
course,
with
all
the
gays
off
duty,
Ben
and
Maggie
are
forced
to
hire
a
tacky
(but
really
funny)
wedding
planner
who
covers
everything
in
gold
lamé.
Will
the
gays
come
to
the
rescue
and
save
the
wedding?
Will
the
governor
see
the
light
about
same-sex
marriage
rights?
Will
Shel
propose
to
his
boyfriend?
It
all
comes
together
in
a
great,
happy,
but
realistic
ending.
AND
THERE
IS
PLENTY
to
learn
from
the
movie.
“What
we
want
[the
audience]
to
take
away
is
the
fact
that,
obviously,
gay
people
deserve
the
same
rights
as
anyone
else,”
Meron
says.
“We
wanted
to
seduce
people
with
the
charm
and
likeability
of
the
characters
and
that
they
will
be
convinced
that
what
Shel
is
asking
for
is
the
right
thing
because
they
like
him
and
they
trust
him.”
Both
Meron
and
Zadan
have
a
track
record
of
wooing
audiences.
They
have
an
Oscar
for
their
work
on
“Chicago”
and
have
produced
acclaimed
television
movies
about
Judy
Garland,
the
Beach
Boys,
Ronald
and
Nancy
Reagan
and
“Don’t
Ask,
Don’t
Tell”
fighter
Margarethe
Cammermeyer.
In
2003,
“The
Reagans”
was
originally
slated
to
run
as
a
miniseries
on
CBS,
but
was
shuttled
off
to
Showtime
(both
are
owned
by
Viacom)
when
conservatives
protested
the
way
the
movie
dealt
with
then-President
Reagan’s
reaction
to
the
AIDS
crisis.
“We’re
used
to
doing
movies
that
raise
tremendous
controversy,”
Zadan
says.
“The
best
way
for
us
to
achieve
change
is
for
us
to
make
movies
that
are
incredibly
entertaining
and
captivating.
When
you
go
into
someone’s
living
room
and
you
bring
attractive
actors
who
are
riveting,
you
have
people
who
love
the
characters
so
much
that
they
forget
the
subject
matter.
When
it’s
over
you,
have
a
different
view
of
the
topic
than
before
tuning
in
to
the
movie.”
Even
Stamos
learned
something
during
filming,
which
was
especially
hard
for
him,
since
he
had
a
bad
case
of
bronchitis
while
shooting
in
Canada
(where
the
movie’s
gay
director
Jim
Fall,
of
“Trick”
fame,
took
advantage
of
their
marriage
laws
to
wed
his
husband).
“I
learned
more
about
gay
marriage
and
the
rights
and
what
comes
with
it
and
the
more
technical
stuff,
which
is
what
I
wanted
to
learn,”
he
says,
joking
that
his
first
time
playing
gay
was
as
Uncle
Jesse
on
the
sitcom
“Full
House.”
“I
like
his
conviction
and
that
he
stood
up
for
what
he
believed
in.
I’m
not
political,
but
I’m
growing
older
and
I
do
feel
like
I
have
something
to
say.
I’m
getting
to
an
age
where
I
want
to
have
some
responsibility,
and
I
felt
that
...
