MTV presented its upcoming docuseries, “Virgin Territory,” at the Television Critics Association press tour with panelists that didn’t quite reflect any groundbreaking differences between the genders.
The panel was made up of two women of faith in their early-20s, Dominique Sullivan and Lisa Youngerman, who are waiting for sex until marriage. They’re joined by Alec Melger, 21, a gay man from a small Arizona town who can’t wait to have sex.
So, two women who want to remain virgins and a guy that wants to lose it ASAP? That sounds like every college sex movie ever. What’s groundbreaking about that?
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The panel insists that the show’s other participants will represent more diverse attitudes toward sex.
“I think you’re going to be very surprised by the show,” Melger told TheWrap. “We are socialized to think that women don’t want sex and men do. You’ll be very surprised when you see women who want to hold it, women who want to keep it and men who want to keep up. It’s going to change the way that we look at how each gender wants sex, because we’re profoundly different.”
The series was born out of a partnership between MTV and the National Campaign to Prevent Teen and Unplanned Pregnancy. Sarah Brown was on the panel to bring her surveys and statistics to the conversation, such as “70 percent of those young people surveyed admired their peers for waiting.”
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The series seems born out of one fact from the CDC, which says that teens are waiting longer to have sex.
MTV’s cameras went out and captured 15 young adult virgins from across the country to explore the decisions they’re making revolving around having sex.
“I think one of the powerful things about ‘Virgin Territory’ is that they chose many, many reasons why young people might want to wait,” said Brown. “There’s no single reason and there’s no single reason for men or women. Some people want it. Some can’t find it, which I think makes for great storytelling.”
“Virgin Territory” premieres next Wednesday at 11/10c on MTV.