‘Cis’ actors playing trans characters. Males actors getting away with doing it whilst female actors apologise for thinking about it

We haven't yet discussed Pantomime Dames. Only to be played by women. Drag becomes null and void so poof goes Rau Paul's drag race. There's more irony in TRActivism than anywhere else right now.

'That's what I do for a living, try to be people that I'm not'

A topical article here: www.dailymail.co.uk/tvshowbiz/article-10313585/Javier-Bardem-responds-criticism-Spanish-playing-Cuban-American-Desi-Arnaz.html

If only transpeople can play transpeople that's fine by me, just so long as they NEVER play a non transperson.

By this reasoning, am I to understand from now on that only paedophiles can play paedophiles in films?
Only rapists can play rapists?
Only murderers can play murderers?

TV will be very odd in the future if this is what counts as sense when casting for films.

How does China feel about TWAW? (Apart from in their Olympic squads, where they are very keen.)!

Ironically, one of the biggest celebrities in China is Jin Xing - a former People's Liberation Army soldier who transitioned and became a famous dancer, and now TV host.

That said, general LGBTQ rights aren't publically discussed there as a matter of course.

The only requirement for being cast in a part should be to physically look the part and to be able to give a convincing portrayal of the character. So playing gay, trans, Mancunian doesn't require you to have those characteristics in real life, but Othello shouldn't be played by a white bloke in black face.

Because the best person to play eg a 35 year old police officer would be a 35 year old police officer, not an actor. She would be uniquely qualified to play that role in a way that the actor is not.

Richard O'Brien came out on JR'S side last year -
www.theguardian.com/stage/2020/nov/05/richard-obrien-interview-rocky-horror-trans-crack-stroke-70s

Interesting, thanks for the link! I would have expected some backlash against him for this, even though it was cautiously worded. (But I would have missed it if there was any.)

He didn't seem to completely get where JR is coming from, no surprise there, really.

Tim Curry mentioned in a fan Q&A (in response to a question about memorable fan interactions) that he had gotten death threats and was once stalked by a transvestite who was on parole for murdering his lover.

Do I have to check the sheep identify as sheep?

My DS played a shepherd and unlike the Jewish flock attendants at the time, isn’t circumcised

Oh no I played a Roman when I was younger, I need to confess my obvious cultural appropriation

Netflix will adjust the umbrella academy somehow to accommodate her transitioning to he. They will in part do this because it will appeal to the audience for that specific show, and in part to boost their LGBTQ+-*/%etc points to offset their refusal to drop Dave Chappel. I reckon Page might get one more role after that - probably playing a youngish, non-threatening, non-sexy man - a "best friend" type role - and then that'll be it. How many male actors are there under 5'6"? Plus Hollywood had to have 1 eye on the international market. How does China feel about TWAW? (Apart from in their Olympic squads, where they are very keen.)

Quite apart from the issues of only T people can play T people but T people can play anything, because sometimes TWAW but are still T rather than W when it serves, and the whole acting thing, a film rarely gets off the ground without a well known name or two in the lead role who will help at the box office. Films are products that sell to make money. However you feel about it, that's the fact, that's the reality.

That means that an unknown T actor in the lead role is a financial risk that is very unlikely to be taken up if you know how many projects are set up and how very very few get taken up, funded and manage to stay solvent to the point of release. Not to mention Hollywood has been systematically trained now by experience that trying to have a T role or a T theme in a film just leads to all hell breaking loose and the film usually never gets made. It's not possible to do. As a result, there's almost none of them.

Cutting off noses to spite faces comes to mind.

Can't remember which one. The Beaumont Society founder that's always pushing her book on Twitter.

I do wonder what roles Elliot Page will be cast in going forward. As a 5 feet 1 inch man who looks like a teenage boy but is actually 34, I’m not sure where Elliot’s career is headed?

I wonder what would happen if Tim Curry made some gender critical statement. After all, he played a diabolical murderous transvestite from Transexual, Transylvania.

In BIG, Tom Hanks played the role of a 13 year old boy in the body of an adult man. Going by the logic of current ideologies it should have been played by an actual transage man who identifies as a 13 year old. Not sure how comfortable Hollywood is with that idea though…

(I have issues with the BIG movie but feel it is an appropriate example in this context)

At least...3 sheep...sigh.

My DD recently played a shepherd. Will she now have to release a statement on twitter? Admittedly gender wasn't discussed and the robes were ambiguous but the biblical context suggests shepherds probably had pensises and she definitely doesn't.

There is also Elliott Page's non-trans character in Umbrella Academy. Although I'd expected it's the kind of show that would make the character trans to accommodate.

So who knows.

Whilst filming Marathon Man Dustin Hoffman stayed up all night, so people could see he was a tortured soul.
Laurence Olivier suggested that he could just try acting instead