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

I think acting is dying as a profession anyway with fewer people going to theatres and cinemas and it not being about actually acting a different character any more but just playing lots of similar parts.

I don’t think so based on increase in Netflix and success of shows like Succession which show the best acting I’ve seen for a while.

Going back to op I agree it’s acceptable for men to play transwomen although I think the show Pose was quite good for using the actors it did.

Plus did Hilary Swank get a hard time for doing Boys Don’t Cry - am I remembering that correctly?

But in America for financial purposes Izzard is in boy mode. It's only when they are shitting on women's rights in the UK that they pop on their pink beret which clearly signifies girl mode.

I'm very happy to see Izzard in male roles but agree it's embittering then having them go on about access to women's spaces and feeling frightened by teenage girls in toilets.

Its a challenge to my 'men should happily dress in a femme way' view because it always seems to escalate in a way that women wearing leathers doesn't.

I guess I mean visually qualified for.

Eddie Redmayne was a man who put a costume on and then acted.

What is the difference between that and someone who says they are trans and who is a male that puts a costume on and then acts?

I think acting is dying as a profession anyway with fewer people going to theatres and cinemas and it not being about actually acting a different character any more but just playing lots of similar parts. Plus a lot of films and dramas feel like watching woke propaganda now. The younger generation don't have a TV/ theatre habit and the older generation don't like being preached to. Actors deciding actually acting a part was a terrible thing and denouncing people who have the effrontery to try and act a different type of person has just hastened its demise. Then there's the smugness and virtue signalling they love. Will we be left with news, documentaries and reality TV with lots of influencer, oh and males doing sport

The last few programmes I’ve recently seen featuring Eddie Izzard, have him performing in a male role while identifying as female in real life. Doesn’t bother me at all, but in the spirit of fairness, would like to know how Eddie justifies accepting the roles.

I guess I mean visually qualified for.

I can't help remembering the black British actors who left for the US because they simply could not get cast here, not for parts that could be played by any race, and black-specific projects were rarely funded. Looking at the TV I think and hope that has changed. There are more trans parts coming no doubt.

Isn't that the unique qualification, being able to ACT?

I mean, James Bond has not been played by ex members of the secret service, they are ACTING? To a script, written by writers...

I get the rage every time I see Eddie Redmayne’s face advertising Cabaret.

He, an able-bodied ‘cis’ man played Stephen Hawkins, the trans person in The Danish Girl and now a gender non conforming / camp part in Cabaret …. and he was one of the key denouncers of JKR.

I believe actors act. But also that they shouldn’t be discriminated against. The film industry is guilty of wanting everyone beautiful, young, thin and flawless.

Are we getting to the stage that people can only play themselves on stage and screen?

I think a lot of theatres have recently committed to only casting trans characters in trans roles. Gets them a bit of good press anyway (that is probably disproportionate to the number of roles out there) but hey as long as they're seen to be doing something, innit.

I saw an interesting conversation with Danny Miller from Emmerdale on IACGMOOH. He's been playing a gay character for years. I've never seen it, but apparently it's (currently) ok for a straight man to play a gay man on a soap. I wonder how long that will be acceptable. Interestingly when I googled "Danny from Emmerdale" the first thing that came up was "is he gay?"

I think Russell T Davies said recently that he will only be casting gay actors to play gay characters. A lot of people agreed with him on Twitter, but there was some disagreement from gay actors, such as James Dreyfus and Neil Patrick Harris who said it was a daft idea as the whole point of acting is, well, to act.

Patriarchy has changed the dress code but it's still Patriarchy

Beautifully put

I do get that making a living as a trans performer can't be easy and it must be frustrating when a part comes up that you're uniquely qualified for and someone else who isn't as qualified gets it.

Surely if transwomen ARE women, then a woman could play one.

The upshot of this will be terrible actors in terrible films which we wont want to see.

It appears that new wave feminism has resulted in the removal of spine

Are we getting to the stage that people can only play themselves on stage and screen?

I saw an interesting conversation with Danny Miller from Emmerdale on IACGMOOH. He's been playing a gay character for years. I've never seen it, but apparently it's (currently) ok for a straight man to play a gay man on a soap. I wonder how long that will be acceptable. Interestingly when I googled "Danny from Emmerdale" the first thing that came up was "is he gay?"

There was quite a fuss when Julie Hesmondhalgh was cast in Corrie

That's nearly 25 years ago - but Classic has been showing her early episodes in the last few months

Have read USA acting approach different from here.

USA approach is it's necessary to relate to character in whatever way.

I assume this is what leads to USA films seem to have actors who play exactly the same character (play themselves) in every single role.

Re: Terence Stamp - there was a furore about the casting of a recent tour of the musical. Lots of apologies and promises to "do better", etc IIRC. So it's a grievance that's really only popped up in the last few years.

Think Jeffrey Tambor got a lot of kudos out of Transparent until he didn't and had to bow out.

Is it OK for trans actors to be given parts as non-trans characters, though? Surely they're limiting their roles if they can only ever play their own gender....

Oh blimey! No she isn't, but she's the college scandal woman who went to prison.

Felicity Huffman not Julianne Moore. Actually I don't know if Felicity Huffman is trans.

Kind of feel for anyone who has an extra barrier to succeeding in that industry, but yy to the imbalance re female performers.

Has anyone been at Julianne Moore (I think) for Transamerica, or Terence Stamp for Priscilla? Guess it's too long ago.