Ryan Murphy’s new series Pose takes a big step for television in casting
In a groundbreaking move, American Horror Story-creator Ryan Murphy’s upcoming FX series Pose will make history with the largest transgender cast ever.
A six-month search has resulted in a groundbreaking casting by the pioneering, prolific creator behind American Horror Story and Glee. According to The Hollywood Reporter, Ryan Murphy’s upcoming FX show Pose is set to have the largest transgender cast ever for a scripted series.
The trailblazing show will feature MJ Rodriguez (Nurse Jackie, Luke Cage), Indya Moore (Saturday Church), Angelica Ross (Transparent), Hallie Sahar (Transparent, Mr. Robot), and model Dominique Jackson.
The move drew praise across Twitter, both for its significance and recognizing the individual talent of the actors cast.
Thank you Ryan Murphy for bringing trans stories into homes around the world, making history in the process. 💗💙 https://t.co/fvxbM5tvpR
— Human Rights Campaign (@HRC) October 25, 2017
Never been much of a Ryan Murphy fan but I am completely here for this 👏👏👏👏👏https://t.co/eOQwTxocCT
— Sarah (@HeresTheThing17) October 25, 2017
Deadline reports that Pose “examines the juxtaposition of several segments of life and society in New York City: the emergence of the luxury Trump-era universe, the downtown social and literary scene and the ball culture world.”
Behind the camera, Murphy has assembled a dream team. Silos Howard, Transparent‘s first trans director, will be executive co-producer. Meanwhile, the writer’s room will include Steven Canals (Dead of Summer), best-selling author Janet Mock, and Our Lady J (Transparent). Striving for accuracy, they will be consulted by numerous veterans of the 1980s ball culture.
The series will also be mentoring up-and-coming transgender directors throughout as part of Murphy’s Half Foundation initiative.
Although Murphy’s efforts have been applauded, many are still skeptical in light of the writer-director’s controversial history of portraying women and underrepresented groups. He has been accused of reserving AHS‘s goriest violence for female characters, propagating “hipster racism” on Scream Queens, and homophobic humor on The New Normal.
I want to like this but I don't trust Ryan Murphy at all when it comes to writing women
— Latinx Geeks 📢 Supports the Strikes (@LatinxGeeks) October 25, 2017
Everytime Hollywood praise Ryan Murphy for his "diversified" or "lgbt" cast or "progressive shows" I just remember Glee and roll my eyes.
— Too gay to exist (@patronustrip) October 25, 2017
With Pose, Murphy and co.. are making are clearly making a welcome and conscious effort to improve minority representation in television. His latest endeavor dives into the wealth of talent in the transgender acting community to bring fresh faces from an often-overlooked demographic to the small screen, and it is long overdue.
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Here’s hoping he does it justice.