Jared Leto is known for his extreme acting methods throughout Hollywood. For the filming of The Suicide Squad (2016), he apparently did not break the Joker character once throughout the time the cast was filming, going as far as to send creepy token-like dead pigs to his fellow cast members. His method acting prior to this also applied to his film as the trans woman, Rayon, in The Dallas Buyer’s Club (2013). Movie industry critics praised Jared Leto’s performance and it won him an Oscar for Best Supporting Actor in 2014. However, many transgender folks and allies take serious issue with his performance because at the end of the day he is still a man playing a trans woman and not an actual trans woman. Using cisgender actors to play trans parts has damaging implications for the trans community and these films fall short of being true trans activist pieces because of it.
My first experience truly seeing and recognizing a trans story was watching Laverne Cox play “Sophia Burset” on Orange is the New Black. It is embarrassing to admit, but this was one of the first times I really stopped to consider the lack of trans characters I had encountered in TV or film. Laverne Cox brought power and depth to her character, that I think would be unmatched by any cis actor. Her character Sophia’s struggles to bridge her relationship with her son, and to fight for her right to hormones may not have reflected Cox’s real life story. However, throughout her narrative, you feel real pain and frustration shine through. Laverne Cox is playing the character; she is not playing a trans woman.
Laverne Cox as Sophia Burset in the hit TV show, “Orange is the New Black.”
Although it is exciting that trans stories are being brought into the limelight, in movies such as The Dallas Buyer’s Club (2013), The Danish Girl (2015) and Transamerica (2005), many trans people and allies, criticize the lack of trans people involved in the making and acting of the films. Jared Leto has said that he “spoke with some transgender kids” to make sure he was playing his character Rayon, genuinely in, The Dallas Buyer’s Club (2013). Yet, no trans people have come forward about advising him, and there were no references of these consultations in any credits. Similarly, Eddie Redmayne, in The Danish Girl (2015), spoke to trans women but is that enough of a consultation to truly embody a trans character? Both have proven themselves allies for trans women by taking on roles which are intended to raise awareness about trans lives, however, at the same time, they both are an obstacle in the way of progress.
A common argument for directors and those involved in casting and producing is that there aren’t enough trans actors to cast that are “right” for the film. In response to casting Elle Fanning in the movie, 3 Generations, as a trans boy, Director Gaby Dellal said:
“I guess I was in a tricky situation because I needed to find an actor who was experienced enough to take on this role, who hadn’t transitioned yet, who was a trans man or trans boy. That’s quite a tall order. Unfortunately, I was unable to fill that role…”[i]
Dellal’s sentiments may be genuine, but the fact that there were no trans actors experienced enough to take on the role of a trans character is shocking. Sadly, it is not uncommon for trans actors to be passed up for trans roles. A trans actress, Alexandra Billings, was cast as the character, Sabrina, in Transamerica, for 24 hours only to be passed up by Felicity Huffman, a cis woman, because they needed a more reputable name to get backing for the film.[ii] Instances like these show that this problem goes far beyond just directorial decision but a societal prejudice against trans individuals and a lack of opportunity for trans actors to get their foot in the door of the film industry. Is it really fair to do a movie revolving around a trans character without a trans actor playing them? I don’t feel like it is possible for a cisgender person to truly give the piece the justice it deserves. Steve Friess elaborates on this point in his TIME opinion piece, “Don’t Applaud Jared Leto’s Transgender ‘Mammy.’” In this piece, he compares Leto’s Oscar nomination to Hattie McDaniel’s Oscar win in 1940, for her portrayal of Mammy in “Gone With The Wind.” Friess argues that people viewed McDaniel’s win as a progressive win against racism for America. However, now we look back on McDaniel’s portrayal of Mammy as an “archetypical, racist touchstone.”[iii] Friess argues, that like McDaniel’s Mammy, Leto’s Rayon, lacks true authenticity and thus, the role should not be getting the amount of attention and celebration it has.
Another issue is that this lack of authenticity presents the idea that trans women are just men in dress up, or that trans men are just women in baggy clothes and beards. This sends a false and potentially life-threatening message to the public. Nick Adams, the director of GLAAD’s Trangender Media Program, argued in an op-ed piece for the Hollywood Reporter, that cis portrayals of trans characters are “yet another painful reminder that, in the eyes of so many people, transgender women are really just men.” This representation can also have fatal consequences. Jen Richards, an Emmy-nominated transgender writer, actress, and producer wrote a piece called, “Straight Men Kill The Trans Women They Love.”[iv] In this article, Richards argues that when cis men play trans woman roles, men have anxiety about the women they are attracted to because of their own internalized homophobia and transphobia. This conflict often turns to violence. Richards talks about her own experiences with men seeking her out and then experiencing what is apparently admissible in 49 states, “trans panic.”[v] “Trans panic” defense is when the defense asks a jury to find that a victim’s gender identity is to blame for the defendant’s excessively violent reaction. This claim asserts that the victim’s gender identity can excuse the perpetrator’s loss of self-control and assault of the individual.[vi] This heinous defense excuses criminals and sends the message that trans lives are not as valuable as others. Furthermore, this assertion that “trans women are really just men” and trans men are really just women” bolsters the “bathroom bill” legislation arguments, lead by the ridiculous belief that transwomen are just men trying to sneak into women’s private spaces. In the case of James Dixon, a man who killed a black transgender woman, Islan Nettles, Dixon claimed that Nettles put his “manhood” in question. He viewed Nettle’s identity as a trans woman to mean that she was a man and that because of this his “pride was at stake.”[vii] People continue to see trans women’s identity as women to be false, and when men continue to play trans women, this false idea is strengthened. There were 28 recorded homicides of trans people in 2017—our society can not afford to take any more chances on misrepresenting trans people.[viii] False depictions of trans characters are endangering trans lives and helping support laws, which take away trans people’s fundamental rights.
It is also so important to consider trans representations when considering the audience viewing these TV shows and films, both trans people and the mass public. A fabulous short YouTube video created by Screencrush, presents some important arguments as to why the appearance of trans people is important in the media:
https://www.youtube.com/watch?time_continue=233&v=ZPU71jzrv-Q
Highlights
- 84% of Americans learn about trans people through the media
- Television and film is usually the first and only time many trans youth see themselves
- Trans roles in media are often reduced to “plot twists and punchlines”
- The idea that even giving trans people small roles is a step to helping trans people get their foot in the door to reoccurring roles and then leading roles
- With more visibility comes normalization and acceptance
A critical point this video raises is the impact that trans visibility in the media has on young people. Young trans people rarely see themselves depicted in TV and film, and the content they are seeing is usually either at best, not accurate, and at worst, offensive and demeaning. (For example, in the film, Ace Ventura: Pet Detective (1994), when Jim Carrey’s character discovers the female police officer he kissed was actually a man, he throws up, uses an entire tube of toothpaste to brush his teeth and burns all his clothes. This scene is intended to be comedic and it reeks of transphobia.) It is already rare to see trans characters on TV and having them played by cis people, only aids the erasure of trans identities. It is important for young people to have role models and to see themselves represented. From positive representations of characters we relate to in the media, we gain strength, motivation, and foster feelings of acceptance and belonging.
Furthermore, it is important to consider the effect these representations have on the mass public. The mass American public is learning about trans people mainly through the media. The YouTube video above, said in 2015; only 16% of Americans knew a trans person. This lack of knowledge and understanding is not helped by the ridiculous representations of trans people in film and TV shows as being a “worst case scenario” date, or a character to gawk or laugh at. The depictions are not often positive ones, and thus, people are using negative stereotypes about trans people to make assumptions.
However, because of the power of influence the media has this means that just as the media can present negative images, it can also present positive ones. The media can work the other way to help raise awareness, support, and respect for trans people. Laverne Cox has talked about how her experience as a trans woman playing trans characters has shown her that, “audiences not only have empathy for the character [she] play[s] but they find themselves having empathy for the actor that plays that character.”[ix] This is an encouraging statement for the trans movement and we can only hope that with better awareness and trans representation will come more empathy and understanding for trans individuals.
Fortunately, there are some important media wins for the trans community to acknowledge. There have been some wonderful representations of trans women playing trans women cropping up in the past few years. The TV series, Sense8, created by trans woman director Lana Wachowski, has a trans character named Nomi Marks who is played by a trans woman Jamie Clayton. Having trans woman throughout a variety of the processes of the making of the TV show brings an authenticity and passion to the show. One of the biggest steps this show takes, that Jamie Clayton touches on in an interview with OUT magazine, is that her character’s role does not revolve around Nomi’s transition. She says, “It’s great that more people of trans experience are writing. That’s where it comes in that we exist, because they have the experience of just existing. [x] This is a big step, as it is a tendency of films and shows to focus on trans character’s transition, their sexuality, and their bodies. Not all trans people choose to transition the same way, choose to identify the same way and choose to present the same way. Also, there is a tendency to view trans people through a lens of exoticism and “othering.” The fascination with trans bodies and medical surgeries, if not done carefully, can often feel invasive and exploitive of individuals’ personal experiences. By placing trans characters in plots that don’t revolve around their transitions or in some cases, surgeries, it emphasizes the realness or normality of the life of being trans, something which I think has the power to further bolster empathy, relatability and understanding to viewers watching.
Jamie Clayton, as Nomi Marks from the TV series “Sense8”
Art is a powerful form of activism, and when used correctly could lead to powerful changes of sentiment and legislation for trans justice in the future. The more accurate and authentic portrayals of trans people in the media has the ability to change the world for the better for both trans and cis people. Potentially, trans representation in TV and film has the power to reduce the incredible violence inflicted every year against trans people, and create a better space of empathy and understanding for all.
[i] “14 Cisgender Actors in Transgender Roles” https://www.hollywoodreporter.com/lists/cisgender-actors-transgender-roles-elle-fanning-eddie-redmayne-more-998984
[ii] http://screencrush.com/alexandra-billings-interview-our-hollywood/
[iii] http://time.com/10650/dont-applaud-jared-letos-transgender-mammy/
[iv] Ibid
[v] http://www.newnownext.com/why-straight-men-kill-the-trans-women-they-love/05/2017/?xrs=synd_twitter_nnn&utm_content=buffer0d0cd&utm_medium=social&utm_source=twitter.com&utm_campaign=bufferà Richards
[vi] https://lgbtbar.org/what-we-do/programs/gay-and-trans-panic-defense/
[vii] https://www.advocate.com/transgender/2016/4/05/james-dixon-pleads-guilty-death-black-trans-woman-islan-nettles
[viii] https://www.hrc.org/resources/violence-against-the-transgender-community-in-2017
[ix] “Laverne Cox Opens Up About Cisgender…” https://www.huffingtonpost.com/entry/laverne-cox-cisgender-actors-trans-women_us_594518b4e4b0f15cd5bba58e
[x] https://www.out.com/out-exclusives/2017/5/11/sense8-star-jamie-claytons-mission-eliminate-labels
I thought that this piece was very thought-provoking, and helped me (a cis person) really understand how far the lack of trans representation lies. In the past, I knew that it was important to have trans representation on the screen, however, I kind of passed it off as a “as long as they are there” mentality at first. I remember when The Danish Girl came out. My friend and I went to see it – in the only movie theater that was showing it nearby (which is another problem of representation, not only in the film’s portrayal, but of how limited the screening locations were). We were very happy, especially as fans of Eddie Redmayne. I now look back at this movie and think about how it could have been improved. I also wanted to talk about your point on how cis portrayals of trans characters only elicits the notion that trans women are men to many people. I agree with your statement, especially because I can see it embodied in my mother. Whenever she sees a trans woman on the tv screen, she tries to ‘figure them out’ as if they are deceiving her in some way. She will say something along the lines of, “oh, no wonder they seem like a man” before I correct her and say that they are a woman. It makes me wonder if my mom would better understand and be more readily susceptible on trans identities if she could see more representation in the media – I surely hope so and wish that trans representation was improved upon.