The Real O'Neals

Based in Chicago, the O’Neals appear to be a seemingly picture perfect family, but their lives soon take an unexpected turn when surprising truths are revealed. Eileen is a mom who usually has a fine grasp on all matters under her roof, and her soon-to-be-ex-husband Pat is a good-natured father and the emotional center of the family. Their normal routine at home suddenly gets turned upside down when Eileen and Pat announce their divorce, and their sixteen-year-old-son Kenny reveals to his family that he is gay. Kenny never would have imagined his admission would also result in outing his entire family’s secrets, including revelations from his older brother, Jimmy, and little sister, Shannon. Jimmy unapologetically wears his heart on his sleeve and genuinely tries to figure out what’s best in any situation, while Shannon is the youngest but carries herself more mature than her age. Life in the O’Neals household wouldn’t be complete without Aunt Jodi, Pat’s ex-sister-in-law and Eileen’s best friend, who is quite the frequent visitor and is also willing to admit things are far from perfect in her own life. What seems like a sudden upheaval that could mark the end of the O’Neals idyllic lives turns out to be the beginning of a bright new chapter when everyone stops pretending to be perfect and actually starts being real.

Following the “coming out” confessions made by everyone in the O’Neal family, Eileen is desperate to control the situation and tries to make Kenny “un-gay.” Meanwhile, Kenny tries to find the right time to break up with Mimi and has a heart-to-heart with late-night host Jimmy Kimmel.

Eileen reminds her family that it’s Lent and asks them to give up things they really love, which in turn proves to be quite a daunting task. In a chance meeting, Kenny meets his first gay crush, and Pat discovers his little girl, Shannon, is all grown up.

When Kenny, Jimmy and Shannon head back to school, Kenny decides to start the first LGBT club at St. Barklay’s in honor of National Coming Out Day. After only recruiting one meek lesbian named Allison, Kenny pressures her into coming out to her family and ultimately realizes everyone’s journey isn’t as easy as his own. Meanwhile, Eileen realizes she might have real feelings towards VP Murray, unfortunately Pat also befriends him, which leads to an awkward situation.

We step into the O’Neals’ messy dating lives as Eileen and VP Murray’s secret dating life is about to be unraveled, Kenny jumps into the world of gay dating apps but feels discouraged after not getting enough swipes to the right, and Jimmy goes too far to declare his love for Lacey. Meanwhile, Aunt Jodi meddles with Shannon’s love life after mistakenly thinking she needed her help.

When Halloween arrives, or what Kenny refers to as “the gay Super Bowl,” he plans to go to Boystown to watch the festive costume parade. In an effort to prevent Kenny from attending, Eileen agrees to let him throw his own Halloween party at home. Eileen’s tolerance is ultimately tested when Kenny recruits Stuart and his gay friends to join the big party, and he makes a BIG costume change. Meanwhile, Jimmy and Shannon plan to pull off an epic Halloween prank.