American Gods has been credited for airing the most graphic gay sex scene in network television history on Sunday which featured two Muslim men.

The intense four-minute scene saw actors Mousa Kraish and Omid Abtahi having sex in Abtahi's character's hotel room.

They were both shown naked, their penises in full view.

Abhtahi plays Salim, an Omani trinket salesman, and Kraish plays a Jinn, a nameless mythical creature from Arabian and Islamic mythology in the Starz show.

Sunday's episode saw them meet when the Jinn or Ifrit, as his character is also known, picked Salim up in his NYC taxi.

They retired to Salim's hotel room and where, after having a shower, the Ifrit dropped his towel to reveal a full erection.

Once in the throes of passion on a hotel bed, the actors bodies were transported by CGI to a mythical world before the audience's eyes.

There, they continue having sex until the Ifrit ejaculated fire on to Salim who lay on his back.

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American Gods aired what has been hailed as the most explicit gay sex scene in cable TV history on Sunday between two Muslim characters

Actors Mousa Kraish and Omid Abtahi were shown completely naked on a hotel room bed

The scene ended when Kraish's character ejaculated fire on to his partner

Fans praised the episode for breaking boundaries, labeling it 'romantic', 'tender', 'arousing' and 'sensual'.

Television critics including the New York Times's Abraham Riesman have heralded it as the most erotic gay sex scene in network television history.

Speaking to DailyMail.com on Monday, Kraish said he was amazed by the overwhelmingly positive response.

'Following the responses on social media, I am struck by amazement how much the fans are involved with every moment and how they’ve responded to this chapter in AMERICAN GODS in particular.

'How they’ve responded to me and Omid as the Jinn and Salim have been so positive that I’m just happy that I’m doing all the fans justice. It’s quite moving. A great loving fan base for Neil Gaiman and his work.'

Despite never having filmed a sex scene before, he said he put his faith entirely in the show's creators and his co-star.

'When I found out Omid Abtahi was cast as Salim, that made it so much easier because we’ve been actual friends for the past 10 years. I met Omid when I first moved to Los Angeles from Brooklyn, NY and we clicked as friends and respective artists. Also, we kept running into one another at auditions so he was part of the “brown-actor” community as we would say jokingly.'

The other soothing factor was his trust in Bryan Fuller, the show's executive producer.

'I remember having a deep conversation with him about the nudity and telling him that I wanted to make sure we were not doing this to be shocking or gratuitous. And he truly walked me through his vision. And when you just put your heart and trust in the hands of a man like that you know it will be beautiful.

It began when Kraish's character, a mythical Islamic god, dropped his towel to reveal his erection. Fire burned out of his eyes before he hopped on the bed

The intense four-minute scene was hailed by fans as being 'sensual' and 'romantic'

It was the first sex scene Kraish (above), who is from New York with Palestinian roots, had ever filmed

The pair were shown thrusting on the bed with no attempt made to conceal their nudity

'As for how it portrayed Middle Eastern men while it was in the back of my mind, I wanted it to focus on two people who just connected and loved one another because they needed each other. It doesn’t matter what your race or sexuality is…everyone can understand and connect with that,' he said.

Fuller, who is gay, previously revealed to Entertainment Weekly that he made the straight actors reshoot the scene after deciding their first attempt was not realistic enough.

He later told TV Guide that the pair's love story was one of elements he was most committed to portraying properly when adapting the 2001 novel which the show is based on.

'[It] was an opportunity for us to challenge the audience to not look away from the beauty of this experience for Salim.

'We wanted to make it beautiful. We wanted to make it hypnotic. We wanted to create a sex-positive experience, not only for Salim but for all the men like Salim who have a corrupted sense of sexuality for whatever reason and can't truly be their sexual selves,' he said.

Iranian-born Abtahi, said he was nervous it would be 'too raunchy' before it aired but that he was happy with the result.

'This is not my first gay sex scene so I am a veteran of this genre but for me it was better, it made it a little bit easier having known Mousa for 10 years.

'It felt great and then watching the final product. It's so beautiful,' he said.

They were thrown transformed to another realm by CGI where they continued having sex

Once in the CGI realm, the pair became grey silhouettes of themselves but the fire in Kraish's character's eyes remained

The actors, who are both straight, previously told of their excitement at participating in such a groundbreaking scene. The show's gay executive producer made them film it twice until he believed it was accurate enough

TV experts including The New York Times writer Abraham Riesman heralded the scene as the most graphic in TV history

What is astonishing given his convincing performance is that it was the first sex scene, gay or straight, that Kraish, a New York native with Palestinian roots, had ever participated in.

'Sex scene aside, just seeing two Middle Eastern men represented in that way—with humor and love and joy... It’s taken me 11 years to get to that,' he said at a GLAAD-hosted panel for American Gods last week.

In the show, which airs on Starz, Abtahi plays Omani trinkets salesman Salim. Their characters meet when he hops in to Kraish's character's taxi.

The two initially bonded over their hatred of New York City and went to his hotel.

Once in his room after a brief hand hold in the elevator, the Ifrit asked: 'If I could grant a wish do you think I'd be driving a cab?'

In the morning Salim found himself alone, but the Jinn's sweater and taxi license remained.

Salim put on the sweater and left in his lover's cab to start a new life.

Taxi driver: The pair met when Abtahi's character, an Omani salesman, hopped into the Ifrit's taxi in New York City

Tender moment: The sparks started flying after Salim and the Ifrit touched hands in the elevator

Left behind: The supernatural cabbie left his taxi license behind after their intimate encounter

New life: Salim put on the sweater the Ifrit left behind and started a new life

The show opened with a frail woman balancing on a stool, while talking to her bald cat.

Mr. Jacquel, an incarnation of Anubis, the Egyptian god of the dead [Chris Obi] then arrived at her door.

She assumed he was a robber, but he told her it was worse.

'I am of death, you are dead,' he told her gently.

Bald cat: A woman was reaching for an upper shelf while her hairless cat looked on

She then looked at the kitchen floor to see her own corpse.

Mr. Jacquel told the woman that her family will find her body 'be sad for a time' then find happiness again.

Her son, she's told, will name his first daughter after her.

Bad new: Mister Jacquel, an incarnation of Anubis, the Egyptian god of the dead, informed the woman of her passing

'A bulls*** middle name?' she asked.

'A bulls*** middle name,' he replied, smiling.

He then led her 'to the scales' and plucked out her heart, to see if she 'used it well' in life.

Plucked out: MisterJacquel plucked out the woman's heart to see if she 'used it well'

Scales of justice: The woman's heart was weighed on a scale against a feather

She passed the test and he escorted her to her afterlife that derived from ancient Egyptian religion, rather than her own Islamic faith.

Meanwhile Shadow Moon/ Norse god Odin [Ricky Whittle] woke up inside the Zorya sisters' apartment to witness a woman in a nightgown climbing out of the window

She turned out to be Zorya Polunochnaya or 'Midnight Star' played by Erika Kaar.

Midnight star: Zorya Polunochnaya or 'Midnight Star' was played by Erika Kaar

Zorya told Shadow that she's the third sister of the two Slavic gods Zorya Vechernyaya [Cloris Leachman] and Zorya Utrennyaya [Martha Kelly] from episode two.

They gazed at the Big Dipper and she described a 'bad thing' lurking in the cosmos.

'If it escapes it will lead the whole of everything…the world is over, like that,' she explained.

Big dipper: Zorya looked up at the Big Dipper

World over: Midnight Star star warned of a 'bad thing' lurking in the cosmos

She then scolded Shadow for throwing away the gold coin 'the sun' he'd been given by 6-foot leprechaun Mad Sweeney [Pablo Schreiber].

Zorya then kissed Shadow.

'Disgusting, but in a nice way like blue cheese or brandy,' she said.

Nice way: Shadow and Zorya kissed and she described it like blue cheese

Zorya then pulled the moon from the sky and gave it to him in the form of a silver coin, to keep as 'protection'.

'Don't give it away,' she advised.

Episode two had ended with Shadow playing a deadly game of checkers with Czernobog. Shadow lost, which gave Czernobog the right to kill him with his hammer.

Game time: Shadow and Czernobog were engaged in a deadly game of checkers

To save his life Shadow decided to challenge Czernobog to a second round. If Shadow won, Czernobog would help Wednesday with his mystery mission to Wisconsin. If he lost Czernobog would get two swings of the hammer at Shadow's head.

'I don't think you can kill me with one shot,' goaded Shadow, before winning the game.

Wednesday meanwhile snuggled up to Zorya Vechernayaya and asked her to read his tea leaves.

Tea time: Wednesday tried to get Zorya Vechernayaya to read his tea leaves

'You will fail and they will win,' she decided.

Mad Sweeney saw his luck come to an end after his loss of the golden coin.

A driver [Scott Thompson] who picked him up while hitchhiking was impaled with a pole.

On the road: Mad Sweeney while hitchhiking got a lift from a driver

'Some crazy bad luck,' lamented Mad Sweeney, who had accidentally given the gold coin, and his luck, to Shadow.

'Give me my coin c***,' demanded the moody Irishman.

But Shadow had thrown the coin into the grave of his dead wife Laura Moon [Emily Browning] in Eagle Point, Indiana.

In the face: The driver was impaled as Mad Sweeney's luck turned bad

In search of the coin Sweeney dug up Laura's grave - but found no coffin or corpse.

Wednesday earlier had taken Shadow to prep for some theft, which wasn't part of their initial deal.

'You're going to come out smelling of roses,' assured Wednesday.

Deep talk: Shadow and Wednesday engaged in a deep conversation

Wednesday then commanded Shadow to 'make it snow' and it happened from his will alone.

The pair then engaged in a dispute about the lack of division between fantasy and reality.

Shadow was still hanging on to the idea of 'science' but Wednesday attempted to teach him otherwise.

Science guy: The idea of 'science' was still being championed by Shadow

'You are pretending you cannot believe in impossible things,' he remarked as they encountered a wolf in the road.

The show ended with Shadow meeting his resurrected wife Laura in a hotel room.

Laura had cheated on Shadow with his best friend Robbie [Dane Cook], who is now dead.

'Hi Papi,' she said as the credits rolled.

American Gods continues next week on Starz.

Lucky coin: A gold coin held immense luck and power